Benefits Of Railroad Brush Cutting

By Jerri Perry


It is a very huge menace when shrubs and trees grow in places where they are unwelcome especially when their presence in such places curtails a certain right or enjoyment. There is no denying that vegetation is a very important part of our environment but everything as we know it has a limit. This is especially true for the rail industry which is faced with the task of wiping out plants and keeping them a safe distance away from rail lines for safety reasons. Centuries later, the struggle continues and people find it necessary to carry out railroad brush cutting.

Governments all over the world are taking various steps, the most common of which being to cut and maintain the brush off-track, grade-crossing managing vegetation and spraying and removing weeds along the track. It complements all the other methods and it is very ineffective to use the other methods on their own since that will be a very costly and short-term solution to the problem.

Short term solutions are a no-no and a common feature especially of the spraying weeds method. Because of use of the same chemicals some notorious weeds have become resistant to herbicides, for instance, the mares tail weed and the Russian thistle. It is very difficult and almost impossible to solve this problem of resistance because there is not a wide variety of an herbicide brand to choose from. To make it worse, the herbicide industry is mainly focused on agricultural weeds as opposed to railroad weeds which may be much tougher and more versatile than their counterparts.

To add to that, herbicides are known to be one of the agents of environmental pollution and therefore it does not come as a surprise that some states have banned the use of these chemicals. Luckily, such states can still keep herbs and unwanted weeds steered clear from railroads through such other safe methods as railroad brush cutting.

Another good thing about railroad brush cutting is that besides being very effective it is very time saving because it is possible to make cuts on opposite sides of the rail at once. This combination makes this the most efficient method to eliminate unwanted vegetation from the railroad.

The machine is also uncomplicated and quite very easy to operate ones someone gets the gist of it. It does not require any form of special training to get how it works and hence any Tom, Dick or Harry can take the wheel. This is aided by the fact that it is much lighter than usual locomotives and does not need locomotives to move about.

A lot of money has been spent by governments on the rail industry in a bid to remove vegetation along the railroads but still a permanent solution is elusive. This has made millions of dollars to be flushed down the drain year after year. One of the major causes why the process is so expensive is fuel. The good news is that the railroad brush cutter uses very minimal fuel unlike other locomotives and therefore a whole lot of money is to be saved if this approach is to be adopted.

In summary, although all railroads seek to reduce time and resources spent on maintenance of way, these goals will not be effectively met in the absence of railroad brush cutting, thereby making it the most sort after method.




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