Landslides, including failed earthworks and associated structures pose a grave and escalating threat to railway safety and operations. These unpredictable events can lead to catastrophic accidents, jeopardising the lives of passengers and staff and causing extensive damage to rolling stock and critical infrastructure. The risks increase with the potential for a derailment to trigger the release of hazardous materials from freight trains, creating a serious environmental and public health impact.
The increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather, driven by climate change, is making these ground failures more common as extended periods of wet or dry weather increase, destabilising slopes and embankments and raising stress on structures.
Our Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) technology offers real-time detection and precise location of rapid ground movements such as landslides and earthwork failures across entire rail routes. By continuously monitoring the acoustic signatures of moving earth, our system delivers vital, near-instantaneous alerts, empowering operators to take immediate action and effectively mitigate these challenging risks.
