250+ TOP MCQs on Railway Line and Answers

Civil Engineering Drawing Multiple Choice Questions on “Railway Line”.

1. ______ percentage of Indian rails routes are electrified.
a) 66%
b) 25%
c) 45%
d) 76%

Answer: c
Clarification: It is the fourth largest railway network in the world by size, comprising 119,630 kilometres (74,330 mi) of total track and 92,081 km (57,216 mi) of running track over a route of 66,687 km (41,437 mi) at the end of 2015-16. Forty-five percentage of its routes are electrified, using entirely 25 kV AC electric traction. The track is mostly broad gauge with small stretches of metre and narrow gauge track. 37% of the tracks are double or multiple tracked.

2. ____________ is the predominant gauge used by Indian railways.
a) Broad gauge
b) Narrow gauge
c) Metre gauge
d) Standard gauge

Answer: a
Clarification: Indian gauge 1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in) (a broad gauge) is the predominant gauge used by IR.
Broad Gauge: width 1676 mm to 1524 mm or 5’6” to 5’0”
Standard Gauge: width 1435 mm and 1451 mm or 4′-8⅟2”
Metre Gauge: width 1067 mm, 1000 mm and 915 mm or 3′-6”, 3′-33/8” and 3′-0”
Narrow Gauge: width 762 mm and 610 mm or 2′-6” and 2′-0”.

3. Sleepers (ties) are mostly made up of _______________
a) wood
b) prestressed concrete
c) metal
d) steak

Answer: b
Clarification: Prestressed concrete is a form of concrete used in construction which is “pre-stressed” by being placed under compression prior to supporting any loads beyond its own dead weight. This compression is produced by the tensioning of high-strength “tendons” located within or adjacent to the concrete volume and is done to improve the performance of the concrete in service.

4. __________ forms the trackbed upon which railroad ties (sleepers) are laid.
a) Track ballast
b) Concrete ballast
c) Rail ballast
d) Wooden ballast

Answer: a
Clarification: It is packed between, below, and around the ties. It is used to bear the load from the railroad ties, to facilitate drainage of water, and also to keep down vegetation that might interfere with the track structure. This also serves to hold the track in place as the trains roll by. It is typically made of crushed stone, although ballast has sometimes consisted of other, less suitable materials, for example burnt clay. The term “ballast” comes from a nautical term for the stones used to stabilize a ship.

5. The shape of ballast should be _____________
a) triangular
b) irregular
c) spherical
d) longitudinal

Answer: b
Clarification: Stones must be irregularly cut, with sharp edges, so that they properly interlock and grip the ties in order to fully secure them against movement; spherical stones cannot do this. In order to let the stones fully settle and interlock, speed limits are often lowered on sections of track for a period of time after new ballast has been laid.

6. In this form of track, the rails are welded together by utilising flash butt welding to form one continuous rail that may be several kilometres long, this type of rail is called __________
a) Continuous jointed rail
b) Merged rail
c) Continuous welded rail
d) Continuous welded rail

Answer: c
Clarification: In this form of track, the rails are welded together by utilising flash butt welding to form one continuous rail that may be several kilometres long. Because there are few joints, this form of track is very strong, gives a smooth ride, and needs less maintenance; trains can travel on it at higher speeds and with less friction. Welded rails are more expensive to lay than jointed tracks, but have much lower maintenance costs.

7. The distance shown by red line represents ______________

a) separation
b) parallel way
c) height
d) gauge

Answer: d
Clarification: During the early days of rail, there was considerable variation in the gauge used by different systems. Today, 54.8% of the world’s railways use a gauge of 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 (frac{1}{2}) in), known as standard or international gauge. Gauges wider than standard gauge are called broad gauge; narrower, narrow gauge. Some stretches of track are dual gauge, with three (or sometimes four) parallel rails in place of the usual two, to allow trains of two different gauges to use the same track.

8. The surface of the head of each of the two rails can be maintained by using a ___________
a) rail header
b) rail trimmer
c) rail grinder
d) rail cutter

Answer: c
Clarification: A rail grinder (or rail grinder) is a maintenance of way vehicle or train used to restore the profile and remove irregularities from worn tracks to extend its life and to improve the ride of trains using the track. Rail grinders were developed to increase the lifespan of the tracks being serviced for rail corrugation. Rail grinding is a process that is done to stop the deformation due to use and friction on railroad tracks by removing deformations and corrosion.

9. The track and ballast form the ______________
a) Temporary way
b) True way
c) Rigid way
d) Permanent way

Answer: d
Clarification: The permanent way is the elements of railway lines: generally the pairs of rails typically laid on the sleepers (“ties” in American parlance) embedded in ballast, intended to carry the ordinary trains of a railway. It is described as permanent way because in the earlier days of railway construction, contractors often laid a temporary track to transport spoil and materials about the site; when this work was substantially completed, the temporary track was taken up and the permanent way installed.

10. The longest railway platforms is ______________
a) State Street subway, Chicago
b) Gorakhpur railway station, UP
c) Kharagpur, West Bengal
d) Kollam Junction, Kerala

Answer: b
Clarification: • Gorakhpur railway station, Uttar Pradesh, India:1,366.33 m (4,483 ft) (longest in the world).
• Kollam Junction, Kerala, India:1,180.5 m (3,873 ft)
• Kharagpur, West Bengal, India: 1,072.5 m (3,519 ft)
• State Street subway, Chicago, Illinois, US: 1,067 m (3,501 ft) (longest in North America)
• Bilaspur railway station, Chhattisgarh, India: 802 m (2,631 ft).