Data-driven insight into settlement monitoring on the High-Speed Line (HSL)

The High-Speed Line (HSL) is one of the Netherlands’ most important rail connections. To safeguard the line’s safety, reliability and availability, Iv has carried out precise railway settlement monitoring for InfraSpeed Maintenance, in cooperation with ProRail, for more than fifteen years.

Using absolute levelling, changes in the track substructure are monitored to millimetre accuracy. The measurements have produced a unique historical dataset that provides insight into the long-term development of the track. Based on this data, Iv developed an intelligent data platform that automatically validates and analyses measurement data and simultaneously converts it into clear dashboards and forecasts.

Parts of the HSL experience uneven settlement. Some sections are subsiding faster than others, while several locations show upward movement. These variations create a complex maintenance challenge that requires accurate monitoring.

In addition, the original baseline survey included only limited documentation. As a result, ProRail lacked a reliable reference for properly assessing the development of the track for a long time. Reliable measurement data is crucial because engineers have limited scope to correct the track and remedial measures require substantial investment.

To identify trends accurately, Iv conducts settlement monitoring from a specially developed stable reference network. Anchors in the Pleistocene soil layer stabilise the network, allowing Iv to identify deviations reliably to millimetre accuracy.

By combining more than fifteen years of measurement data in a single central platform, ProRail has continuous insight into the condition of the HSL track. Consequently, the analyses show where settlement is accelerating, which remedial measures are effective and which sections require additional attention.

Data-driven analyses make it possible to extrapolate settlement trends, improving the predictability of future maintenance needs. In this way, Iv supports ProRail with data-driven asset management, the prioritisation of maintenance activities and evidence-based investment decisions.

This approach enables better risk management and provides a reliable basis for safe, available and future-proof rail infrastructure.