Measurements of the reduction in ground vibration levels from wave barrier trench

Where buildings are adjacent to railroad tracks, there are limited practical applications for controlling the transmission of train vibration. In critical listening spaces like auditoria or government buildings, isolation of the building structure is sometimes undertaken. However, this option is not attractive for most commercial or residential development due to the attendant costs and complications. For these properties, one option for reducing levels of ground vibration is to dig a trench between the tracks and the project to act as a wave barrier. Construction of a deep trench presents a wide variety of construction challenges, and the application of this method has been rare within the United States due to the lack of regulations and sensitivity that might demand such an approach. The authors recently had a project where a wave barrier (trench) was applied, which provided the opportunity to observe the construction of the trench and to measure the resulting reduction in ground vibration levels before and after the installation. Various aspects of this process are discussed.