Question

Railway tracks are banked on curves so that:

• A. no frictional force is produced.
• B. the train may not fall inwards.
• C. necessary centripetal force may be obtained from the horizontal component of normal reaction due to the track
• D. the tracks do not crack.

Answer 1

The correct option is C necessary centripetal force may be obtained from the horizontal component of normal reaction due to the track

When a fast moving train takes a curved path, it tends to move away tangentially off the track. In order to prevent this, the curved tracks are banked on the outside to produce the necessary centripetal force required to keep the train moving in a curved path.

From the above figure, FBD shows that in case of banked railway track, component of normal reaction ($Nsin\theta$), is available to provide the centripetal force at the circular turning or curve.