GEOMETRIC DESIGN OF HIGHWAYS ELEMENTS

Geometric design of highways includes different elements which affect the design features,
economy, and other parameters. The elements of the geometric design of highways are described
below:

1. Cross-section elements

2. Sight distance elements

3. Horizontal alignment

4. Vertical alignment

1. CROSS-SECTION ELEMENTS :
The pavement's cross-sectional characteristics affect its lifespan, rider safety, and comfort.
Pavement surface features have an impact on both of these. It is crucial to take into account the
geometry of various cross-sectional elements like friction, camber, width of carriageway,
shoulders, and kerbs.

 Friction

 Unevenness

 Light reflection

 camber/cross-fall

 Width of carriage way

 Shoulders

 Friction
Friction between the pavement surface and wheel of the vehicle is a crucial factor in the
geometric design of highways. Lack of friction can cause the skidding or slipping of the
wheel on the pavement surface. Skidding occurs when the distance travelled by the wheel
is greater than the circumferential movement of the wheel, while slipping is the
phenomenon in which the actual movement of the wheel is less than the circumferential
movement of the wheel. IRC provides the values of friction as 0.35-0.40 in the
longitudinal direction and 0.15 in the lateral direction.
 There are several factors which affect the friction:
 Type of pavement surface (bituminous, earthen, concrete)

 Age of pavement (new or old)

 Condition of pavement (dry, wet, slippery)

 Condition of tyres (new or old)

 Unevenness
As far as possible, the surface of the pavement should be uniform, but practically it is
impossible to achieve. Hence, a new index called the unevenness index has been
introduced which determines the type of road surfaces. The unevenness index is the
cumulative vertical undulations per kilo meter of road length and is determined using a
device called Bump Integrator.

 Light Reflection
o White roads have good visibility on days, but they glare in day time.

o Black roads do not glare during the day time, but when the surface is wet, black roads
show very poor visibility.

o The best pavement surface in this regard is concrete roads with better visibility and less
glare.

 Camber or Cross Fall

It is also known as cant. The cross slope is provided to raise the middle of the road
surface in the transverse direction. The main purpose of providing camber is to drain off
the rainwater. The value of the camber depends upon two factors: type of pavement
surface and the amount of rainfall.

 Width of Carriageway
Width of the carriageway depends upon the width of the traffic lanes and the number of
lanes. Further, the width of the traffic lanes depends on the width of the vehicle and the
adequacy of clearance. The width of the carriageway based on the number of lanes given
by IRC is as follows:
  Shoulders
Shoulders are provided along the edge of the road and are intended for the
accommodation of stopped vehicles. They serve as emergency land for vehicles and
provide lateral support for base and surface courses. Shoulders should be strong enough
to bear the weight of a fully loaded truck, even in wet conditions. It is desirable to have a
shoulder width of 4.6 m, and a minimum of 2.5 m width is provided for 2-lane rural
highways.

2. SIGHT DISTANCE ELEMENTS :

The safe and efficient operation of vehicles on roads depends very much on the visibility
of the road ahead of the driver. Hence, the geometric design of highways should be done
such that any obstruction on the road could be visible from some distance ahead. This
distance is called sight distance. The sight distance is of different types:

 Stopping sight distance

 intermediate sight distance

 Overtaking sight distance

 Headlight sight distance

 Stopping Sight Distance :-

It is the minimum distance available on a highway at any spot having sufficient length to
enable the driver to stop a vehicle travelling at design speed, safely without collision with
any obstruction. The stopping sight distance is the sum of the lag distance and braking
distance.

Lag distance is the distance the vehicle travels during the reaction time of the driver, and
Braking distance is the distance covered in the actual operation of brakes. IRC
recommends 2.5 seconds as the reaction time of a driver.

 Intermediate Sight Distance :-

Intermediate sight distance is defined as the twice stopping sight distance.

ISD = 2 x SSD
  Overtaking Sight Distance :-

The overtaking sight distance is the distance required by the driver to overtake a slow
moving vehicle ahead safely against the traffic in the opposite direction. It is measured
along the centre line of the road, along which a driver with his eye level 1.2 m above the
road surface can see the top of an object 1.2 m above the road surface. The factors
affecting overtaking sight distance are as follows:

o Velocities of overtaking vehicle, overtaken vehicle and vehicle coming from the opposite
direction.

o Spacing between the vehicles, which in turn depends on the speed

o Reaction time and skill of drivers

o Rate of acceleration of overtaking vehicle

o Gradient of road

 Headlight Sight Distance :-

Headlight sight distance is the distance visible to a driver during night driving under the
illumination of headlights. It is recommended to have a headlight sight distance such that
the vehicle can stop while travelling at the design speed. The headlight sight distance
depends upon the beam angle of the headlight, which is generally taken as 1 degree.

3. HORIZONTAL ALIGNMENT :
 Super elevation

 Transition curve

 Setback distance

 Extra widening

 Super elevation :-

Super elevation or cant or banking of road is the transverse slope provided at a horizontal
curve to counteract the centrifugal force by raising the outer edge of the pavement with
respect to the inner edge, throughout the length of the horizontal curve. Super elevation is
denoted as “e”.
 Transition Curve

The transition curve is a curve with an infinite radius at its straight end and a gradually
decreasing radius at its point of tangency. Due to the following factors, the Indian Roads
Congress advises using a spiral as a transition curve in the horizontal alignment of
roadways.

 Setback Distance :-

It is the clearance distance or set back distance required from the centre line of a
horizontal curve to an obstruction on the inner side of the curve. It is provided for
adequate sight distance. And it depends upon the following factors:

o Required sight distance (SSD)

o Radius of the horizontal curve, (R)

o Length of the curve (LC𝐿𝐶)

 Extra Widening :-

It refers to the additional width of carriageway that is required on a curved section of a

road over and above that required on a straight alignment. This widening is done due to
two reasons: the first one is the additional width required for a vehicle taking a horizontal
curve. This is called mechanical widening, as it is due to the rigidity of the wheelbase,
and the second is due to the tendency of the drivers to ply away from the edge of the
carriageway as they drive on a curve. This is called psychological widening.
 4. VERTICAL ALIGNMENT :
1. Valley curve

2. Summit curve

1. Valley Curve :-

Valley curves or sag curves are vertical curves with convexity downwards. They are
formed when two gradients meet in any of the following conditions:

 When a descending gradient meets another descending gradient

 When a descending gradient meets a flat gradient

 When a descending gradient meets an ascending gradient

 When an ascending gradient meets another ascending gradient.

2. Summit Curve :-

Summit curves are vertical curves with convexity upwards. They are formed when two
gradients meet in any of the following conditions:

 When a positive gradient meets another positive gradient

 When a positive gradient meets a flat gradient

 When an ascent gradient meets a descending gradient

 When a descent gradient meets another descending gradient

 Functional Classification in Geometric Design of Highways

The classification of roads affects the design speed of vehicles, which is a basic parameter for
determining other important geometric design parameters. Design speed is defined as the speed
at which vehicles can continuously travel under favorable conditions.
The design speed and the types of roads are related as tabulated below:

S.No. Road classification Design speed (kmph)

1. National Highways and State Highways 100

2. Major district roads 80

3. Other district roads 50

4. Village roads 40

5. Arterial roads 80

6. Sub-arterial roads 60

7. Collector streets 50

8. Local streets 30

 Importance of geometric design

• The geometric design of a highway deals with the dimensions and layout of visible features of
the highway such as alignment, sight distance and intersection.

• The main objective of highway design is to provide optimum efficiency in traffic operation
with maximum safety at reasonable cost.

• Geometric design of highways deals with following elements :

➢ Cross section elements

➢ Sight distance considerations

➢ Horizontal alignment details

➢ Vertical alignment details

➢ Intersection elements

 Design Controls and criteria

 •Design speed

•Topography

•Traffic factors

•Design hourly volume and capacity

•Environmental and other factors Design speed

• In India different speed standards have been assigned for different class of road

• Design speed may be modified depending upon the terrain conditions.

 Topography
• Classified based on the general slope of the country.

➢ Plane terrain- <10%

➢ Rolling terrain- 10-25%

➢ Mountainous terrain- 25-60%

➢ Steep terrain- >60

 Traffic factor
• Vehicular characteristics and human characteristics of road users.

• Different vehicle classes have different speed and acceleration characteristics, different
dimensions and weight.

• Human factor includes the physical, mental and psychological characteristics of driver
and pedestrian

 Highway cross section elements

 • Carriageway • Shoulder

• Roadway width • Right of way

• Building line • Control line

• Median • Camber/ cross slope

• Crown • Sides lope

• Kerb • Guardrail

• Sided rain • Other facilities.

 Road margins
Parking lane:

• These are provided on urban roads to allow kerb parking

• As far as possible only parallel parking should be allowed as it is safer for moving
vehicle.

•It should have sufficient width say 3m

Lay bay:

• These are provided near the public conveniences with guide map to enable driver to
stop clear off the carriageway.

• It has 3m width,30m length with 15m end tapers on both sides.

Bus bays:

• These may be provided by recessing the kerb to avoid conflict with moving traffic.

• It is located at least 75m away from the intersection.

Frontage road:

• These are provided to give access to properties along an important highway with control
access to express way or free way

• It may run parallel to the highway and are isolated by separator.

Driveway:
 • It connect the highway with commercial establishment like fuel stations, service stations
etc…

• It should be located away from the intersection.

Cycle track:

• It provided in urban areas when the volume of cycle traffic on the road is very high.

• A minimum width of 2m is provided for cycle track.

Footpath:

• These are provided in urban areas when the vehicular as well as pedestrian traffic are
heavy.

• To protect the pedestrian and decrease accident.

• Minimum width of 1.5m is provided.