Abstract
In this paper, a rail joint model consisting of three Euler-Bernoulli beams connected via a Winkler foundation is proposed in order to point out the influence of the joint gap length upon the stiffness of the rail joint. Starting from the experimental results aiming the stiffness of the rail joint, the Winkler foundation stiffness of the model has been calculated. Using the proposed model, it is shown that the stiffness of the rail joint of the 49 rail can decreases up to 10 % when the joint gap length increases from 0 to 20 mm.