Derek Broughton wrote:

the weight of the tie above it. I guess 12 pounds isn't nearly enough to
move a tie, except at glacial speed (and if it's a shorter tie, the force

No, especically as the ligthest sleepers weigh in at around 120 pounds
and can be more than double that. The lateral force would need to be
even greater to move when friction is taken into consideration. Which
comes back to where I started, the weight of the sleepers alone is
sufficient to make it a non-issue.

--
Andy