Fort Riley Railhead Improvement

The Ft. Riley Railhead Improvement project was designed to increase the Army’s capacity for deployment. We did this by mitigating the facility capacity shortcomings that hinder meeting the Department of the Army (DA) standard. Additional ladder tracks, loading docks, and improved lighting were required to enable outloading units and rail load personnel to safely operate the facility and meet the DA standard.

Because loading operations are usually stressful and performed 24/7, improving safety for our service members was a top priority for the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). We started by installing new lighting as rail loading is often conducted during long days and into hours of limited visibility. We also worked to reduce stormwater flooding in the area by replacing the existing stormwater system with new pipes and concrete drainage swales.

The track improvements are located on installation property, and we designed the yard to meet Unified Facility Criteria (UFC). The yard connects to the commercial Union Pacific main line. As a result, all rail improvements were designed to meet the American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association (AREMA) and UFC design criteria.