LECTURE NOTES

ON

TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING
CEPC203 (TH:2)

COMPILED BY
ASST. PROF. PRADEEPTA KISHORE DEHUR
(Email Id- [Link]@[Link])

CIVIL DEPARTEMENT
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING BHUBANESWAR
 CONTENT
CHAPTER TOPIC NAME PAGE NO
NO
1 Highway Engineering : Introduction 1-8
2 Road Geometrics 9-19
3 Road Pavements 20-37
4 Railway -Introduction , Permanent way & Track materials 38-68
5 Geometric for Broad gauge, Points and crossings , Laying & maintenance of track 69-

CHAPTER -1

Introduction :
The history of highway engineering gives us an idea about the roads of ancient times. Roads in Rome were
constructed in a large scale and it radiated in many directions helping them in military operations. Thus, they
are considered to be pioneers in road construction. In this section we will see in detail about Ancient roads,
Roman roads, British roads, French roads etc.
Ancient Roads
The first mode of transport was by foot. These human pathways would have been developed for specific
purposes leading to camp sites, food, streams for drinking water etc. The next major mode of transport was the
use of animals for transporting both men and materials. Since these loaded animals required more horizontal
and vertical clearances than the walking man, track ways emerged. The invention of wheel in Mesopotamian
civilization led to the development of animal drawn vehicles. Then it became necessary that the road surface
should be capable of carrying greater loads. Thus roads with harder surfaces emerged. These have led to the
development of foot-paths. After the invention of wheel, animal drawn vehicles were developed and the need
for hard surface road emerged. The earliest authentic record of road was found from Assyrian empire
constructed about 1900 BC.

Roman roads
The earliest large scale road construction is attributed to Romans who constructed an extensive system of roads
radiating in many directions from Rome. They were a remarkable achievement and provided travel times across
Europe, Asia minor, and north Africa. Romans recognized that the fundamentals of good road construction were
to provide good drainage, good material and good workmanship. Their roads were very durable, and some are
still existing. Roman roads were always constructed on a firm - formed subgrade strengthened where necessary
with wooden piles. The roads were bordered on both sides by longitudinal drains. The next step was the
construction of the agger. This was a raised formation up to a 1 meter high and 15 m wide and was constructed
with materials excavated during the side drain construction. This was then topped with a sand leveling course.
The agger contributed greatly to moisture control in the pavement. The pavement structure on the top of the
agger varied greatly. In the case of heavy traffic, a surface course of large 250 mm thick hexagonal flag stones
were provided.

French roads
The next major development in the road construction occurred during the regime of Napoleon. The significant
contributions were given by Tresaguet in 1764 and a typical cross section of this road is given in Figure 2:2. He
developed a cheaper method of construction than the lavish and locally unsuccessful revival of Roman practice.
The pavement used 200 mm pieces of quarried stone of a more compact form and shaped such that they had at
least one flat side which was placed on a compact formation. Smaller pieces of broken stones were then
compacted into the spaces between larger stones to provide a level surface. Finally the running layer was made
with a layer of 25 mm sized broken stone. All this structure was placed in a trench in order to keep the running
surface level with the surrounding country side. This created major drainage problems which were counteracted
by making the surface as impervious as possible, cambering the surface and providing deep side ditches. He
gave much importance for drainage. He also enunciated the necessity for continuous organized maintenance,
instead of intermittent repairs if the roads were to be kept usable all times. For this he divided the roads between
villages into sections of such length that an entire road could be covered by maintenance men living nearby.

British roads
The British government also gave importance to road construction. The British engineer John Macadam
introduced what can be considered as the first scientific road construction method. Stone size was an important
element of Macadam recipe. By empirical observation of many roads,he came to realize that 250 mm layers of
well compacted broken angular stone would provide the same strength and stiffness and a better running surface
than an expensive pavement founded on large stone blocks. Thus, he introduced an economical method of road
construction.
The mechanical interlock between the individual stone pieces provided strength and stiffness to the course. But
the inter particle friction abraded the sharp interlocking faces and partly destroy the effectiveness of the course.
This effect was overcome by introducing good quality interstitial finer material to produce a well-graded mix.
Such mixes also proved less permeable and easier to compact.

Modern roads
The modern roads by and large follow Macadam’s construction method. Use of bituminous concrete and
cement concrete are the most important developments. Various advanced and cost-effective construction
technologies are used. Development of new equipment help in the faster construction of roads. Many easily and
locally available materials are tested in the laboratories and then implemented on roads for making economical
and durable pavements.
Scope of transportation system has developed very largely. Population of the country is increasing day by day.
The life style of people began to change. The need for travel to various places at faster speeds also increased.
This increasing demand led to the emergence of other modes of transportation like railways and travel by air.
While the above development in public transport sector was taking place, the development in private transport
was at a much faster rate mainly because of its advantages like accessibility, privacy, flexibility, convenience
and comfort. This led to the increase in vehicular traffic especially in private transport network.
This has led to the emergence of transportation planning and demand management.

Highway planning in India

Excavations in the sites of Indus valley, Mohenjo-Daro and Harappan civilizations revealed the existence of
planned roads in India as old as 2500-3500 BC. The Mauryan kings also built very good roads. Ancient books
like Arthashastra written by Kautilya, a great administrator of the Mauryan times, contained rules for regulating
traffic, depths of roads for various purposes, and punishments for obstructing traffic.

During the time of Mughal period, roads in India were greatly improved. Roads linking North-West and the
Eastern areas through gangetic plains were built during this time.
After the fall of the Mughals and at the beginning of British rule, many existing roads were improved. The
construction of Grand-Trunk road connecting North and South is a major contribution of the British. However,
the focus was later shifted to railways, except for feeder roads to important stations.
National highways (NH)
They are main highways running through the length and breadth of India connecting major ports, foreign
highways, capitals of large states and large industrial and tourist centers including roads required for strategic
movements.
It was recommended by Jayakar committee that the National highways should be the frame on which the entire
road communication should be based.
All the national highways are assigned the respective numbers.

For e.g. the highway connecting Delhi-Ambala-Amritsar is denoted as NH-1 (Delhi-Amritsar), where as a
bifurcation of this highway beyond Fullundar to Srinagar and Uri is denoted as NH-1_A.
They are constructed and maintained by CPWD.
The total length of National highway in the country is 58,112 Kms, and constitute about 2% of total road
networks of India and carry 40% of total traffic.

State highways (SH)

They are the arterial roads of a state, connecting up with the national highways of adjacent states, district head
quarters and important cities within the state
They also serve as main arteries to and from district roads. Total length of all SH in the country is 1,37,119
Kms.
Major district roads
Important roads with in a district serving areas of production and markets , connecting those with each other or
with the major highways.
India has a total of 4,70,000 kms of MDR.
Other district roads
Roads serving rural areas of production and providing them with outlet to market centers or other important
roads like MDR or SH.

Village roads
They are roads connecting villages or group of villages with each other or to the nearest road of a higher
category like ODR or MDR.

Modern developments
The first World war period and that immediately following it found a rapid growth in motor transport. So need
for better roads became a necessity. For that, the Government of India appointed a committee called Road
development Committee with Mr.M.R. Jayakar as the chairman. This committee came to be known as Jayakar
committee.
Jayakar Committee
In 1927 Jayakar committee for Indian road development was appointed. The major recommendations and the
resulting implementations were:
• Committee found that the road development of the country has become beyond the capacity of local
governments and suggested that Central government should take the proper charge considering it as a matter of
national interest.
• They gave more stress on long term planning programme, for a period of 20 years (hence called twenty year
plan) that is to formulate plans and implement those plans with in the next 20 years.

• One of the recommendations was the holding of periodic road conferences to discuss about road construc- tion
and development. This paved the way for the establishment of a semi-official technical body called Indian Road
Congress (IRC) in 1934
• The committee suggested imposition of additional taxation on motor transport which includes duty on motor
spirit, vehicle taxation, license fees for vehicles plying for hire. This led to the introduction of a development
fund called Central road fund in 1929. This fund was intended for road development.
• A dedicated research organization should be constituted to carry out research and development work.
This resulted in the formation of Central Road Research Institute (CRRI) in 1950.

Nagpur road congress 1943

The second World War saw a rapid growth in road traffic and this led to the deterioration in the condition of
roads. To discuss about improving the condition of roads, the government convened a conference of chief
engineers of provinces at Nagpur in 1943. The result of the conference is famous as the Nagpur plan.
• A twenty year development programme for the period (1943-1963) was finalized. It was the first attempt to
prepare a co-ordinated road development programme in a planned manner.
• The roads were divided into four classes:
– National highways which would pass through states, and places having national importance for strategic,
administrative and other purposes.
– State highways which would be the other main roads of a state.
– District roads which would take traffic from the main roads to the interior of the district . According to the
importance, some are considered as major district roads and the remaining as other district roads.

– Village roads which would link the villages to the road system.
• The committee planned to construct 2 lakh kms of road across the country within 20 years.
• They recommended the construction of star and grid pattern of roads throughout the country.
• One of the objective was that the road length should be increased so as to give a road density of 16kms per
100 [Link]
Bombay road congress 1961
The length of roads envisaged under the Nagpur plan was achieved by the end of it, but the road system was
deficient in many respects. The changed economic, industrial and agricultural conditions in the country
warranted a review of the Nagpur plan. Accordingly a 20-year plan was drafted by the Roads wing of
Government of India, which is popularly known as the Bombay plan. The highlights of the plan were:
• It was the second 20 year road plan (1961-1981)
• The total road length targeted to construct was about 10 lakhs.
• Rural roads were given specific attention. Scientific methods of construction was proposed for the rural roads.
The necessary technical advice to the Panchayaths should be given by State PWD’s.
• They suggested that the length of the road should be increased so as to give a road density of 32kms/100
[Link]
• The construction of 1600 km of expressways was also then included in the plan.

Lucknow road congress 1984

This plan has been prepared keeping in view the growth pattern envisaged in various fields by the turn of the
century. Some of the salient features of this plan are as given below:
• This was the third 20 year road plan (1981-2001). It is also called Lucknow road plan.
• It aimed at constructing a road length of 12 lakh kilometres by the year 1981 resulting in a road density of
82kms/100 [Link]
• The plan has set the target length of NH to be completed by the end of seventh, eighth and ninth five year plan
periods.
• It aims at improving the transportation facilities in villages, towns etc. such that no part of country is farther
than 50 km from NH.
• One of the goals contained in the plan was that expressways should be constructed on major traffic corridors
to provide speedy travel.
• Energy conservation, environmental quality of roads and road safety measures were also given due importance
in this plan.

Different modes of transportation

Landway (Land Transportation)

Landway refers to the mode of transportation that takes place on land using roads, railways, or pipelines.
It includes vehicles like cars, buses, trucks, bicycles, and trains that move people or goods across the land
surface.
Examples: Roads, railways, pipelines.
Sub-modes:
Roadways: Vehicles like cars, buses, trucks.
Railways: Trains running on tracks.
Waterway (Water Transportation):

Waterway refers to the mode of transportation that involves movement of people or goods over water using
boats, ships, or ferries on rivers, lakes, canals, or seas.
Examples: Ships, boats, ferries.
Used on: Rivers, seas, oceans, and canals.

Airway (Air Transportation):

Airway refers to the mode of transportation where people or goods are carried through the air using
aircrafts such as airplanes, helicopters, and drones.
Examples: Airplanes, helicopters.
Used for: Fast travel across long distances.

Merits and Demerits of Roadways and Railways :

(a)Roadways
Merits:
 Flexible and accessible.
 Door-to-door service.
 Suitable for short distances.
 Easy to construct and maintain.
 Ideal for perishable goods.

Demerits:
 Affected by weather (e.g., rain, snow).
 Traffic congestion.
 Higher operating cost for long distances.
 Less environmentally friendly.
(b) Railways
Merits:
 Suitable for heavy and bulk goods.
 More energy efficient.
 Less affected by weather.
 Cost-effective for long distances.

Demerits:
 Fixed routes and schedules.
 Requires large capital investment.
 No door-to-door service.
 Longer travel times in some cases.
 General Classification of Roads

Roads can be classified based on different criteria:

1. Based on Usage:
1. National Highways (NH) – Connect major cities and states.
2. State Highways (SH) – Connect districts within a state.
3. Major District Roads (MDR) – Connect important places within a district.
4. Other District Roads (ODR) – Serve rural areas.
5. Village Roads (VR) – Connect villages to other roads.

2. Based on Construction:
1. Earth roads – Unpaved, cheapest.
2. Gravel roads – Improved surface.
3. WBM roads – Water Bound Macadam, semi-permanent.
 4. Bituminous roads – Asphalt, common in urban areas.
5. Cement concrete roads – Durable and costly.

3. Based on Traffic Volume:

1. Light traffic roads
2. Medium traffic roads
3. Heavy traffic roads

Selection and Factors Affecting Road Alignment

 Fixed locations like bridges, temples, schools, towns that road must pass through or avoid.
 Terrain (plain, hilly) affects construction and alignment type (straight, curved).
 Type of soil/rock, landslide-prone areas.
 Roads should avoid water-logged or flood-prone areas.
 Present and future traffic volumes to determine road capacity.
 Cost-effective routes preferred considering construction and maintenance.
 Minimize sharp curves, steep gradients, and accident-prone zones.
 Avoid damage to natural habitats, minimize pollution.

CHAPTER-02

Road Geometrics & Road Materials

Pavement surface characteristics
For safe and comfortable driving four aspects of the pavement surface are important; the friction between the
wheels and the pavement surface, smoothness of the road surface, the light reflection characteristics of the top
of pavement surface, and drainage to water.

Friction
Friction between the wheel and the pavement surface is a crucial factor in the design of horizontal curves and
thus the safe operating speed. Further, it also affects the acceleration and deceleration ability of vehicles. Lack
of adequate friction can cause skidding or slipping of vehicles.
Skidding happens when the path travelled along the road surface is more than the circumferential movement of
the wheels due to friction
• Slip occurs when the wheel revolves more than the corresponding longitudinal movement along the road.
Various factors that affect friction are:
• Type of the pavement (like bituminous, concrete, or gravel),
• Condition of the pavement (dry or wet, hot or cold, etc),
• Condition of the tyre (new or old), and
• Speed and load of the vehicle.
The frictional force that develops between the wheel and the pavement is the load acting multiplied by a factor
called the coefficient of friction and denoted as f. The choice of the value of f is a very complicated issue since
it depends on many variables. IRC suggests the coefficient of longitudinal friction as 0.35-0.4 depending on the
speed and coefficient of lateral friction as 0.15. The former is useful in sight distance calculation and the latter
in horizontal curve design.

Unevenness
• White roads have good visibility at night, but caused glare during day time.
• Black roads have no glare during day, but has poor visibility at night
• Concrete roads have better visibility and less glare
It is always desirable to have an even surface, but it is seldom possible to have such a one. Even if a road is
constructed with high quality pavers, it is possible to develop unevenness due to pavement failures. Unevenness
affects the vehicle operating cost, speed, riding comfort, safety, fuel consumption and wear and tear of tyres.
Unevenness index is a measure of unevenness which is the cumulative measure of vertical undulations of the
pavement surface recorded per unit horizontal length of the road. An unevenness index value less than 1500
mm/km is considered as good, a value less than 2500 [Link] is satisfactory up to speed of 100 kmph and
values greater than 3200 mm/km is considered as uncomfortable even for 55 kmph.

Light reflection
It is necessary that the road surface should be visible at night and reflection of light is the factor that answers it.
 White roads have good visibility at night, but caused glare during day time.
 Black roads has no glare during day, but has poor visibility at night
 Concrete roads has better visibility and less glare

The pavement surface should be absolutely impermeable to prevent seepage of water into the pavement layers.
Further, both the geometry and texture of pavement surface should help in draining out the water from the
surface in less time.

Camber
Camber or cant is the cross slope provided to raise middle of the road surface in the transverse direction to drain
off rain water from road surface. The objectives of providing camber are:
 Surface protection especially for gravel and bituminous roads
 Sub-grade protection by proper drainage
  Quick drying of pavement which in turn increases safety

Too steep slope is undesirable for it will erode the surface. Camber is measured in 1 in n or n% (Eg. 1 in 50 or
2%) and the value depends on the type of pavement surface

Width of carriage way

Width of the carriage way or the width of the pavement depends on the width of the traffic lane and number of
lanes. Width of a traffic lane depends on the width of the vehicle and the clearance. Side clearance improves
operating speed and safety. The maximum permissible width of a vehicle is 2.44 and the desirable side
clearance for single lane traffic is 0.68 m. This requires minimum of lane width of 3.75 m for a single lane road.
However, the side clearance required is about 0.53 m, on either side and 1.06 m in the centre. Therefore, a two
lane road require minimum of 3.5 meter for each lane. The desirable carriage way width recommended by IRC.

Kerbs
Kerbs indicate the boundary between the carriage way and the shoulder or islands or footpaths.
 Low or mountable kerbs : This type of kerbs are provided such that they encourage the traffic to remain
in the through traffic lanes and also allow the driver to enter the shoulder area with little difficulty. The
height of this kerb is about 10 cm above the pavement edge with a slope which allows the vehicle to
climb easily. This is usually provided at medians and channelization schemes and also helps in
longitudinal drainage.
 Semi-barrier type kerbs : When the pedestrian traffic is high, these kerbs are provided. Their height is 15
cm above the pavement edge. This type of kerb prevents encroachment of parking vehicles, but at acute
emergency it is possible to drive over this kerb with some difficulty.
 Barrier type kerbs : They are designed to discourage vehicles from leaving the pavement. They are
provided when there is considerable amount of pedestrian traffic. They are placed at a height of 20 cm
above the pavement edge with a steep batter.

Road Margins
The portion of the road beyond the carriageway and on the roadway can be generally called road margin.
Various elements that form the road margins are given below.

Shoulders
Shoulders are provided along the road edge and is intended for accommodation of stopped vehicles,
serve as an emergency lane for vehicles and provide lateral support for base and surface courses. The shoulder
should be strong enough to bear the weight of a fully loaded truck even in wet conditions. The shoulder width
should be adequate for giving working space around a stopped vehicle. It is desirable to have a width of 4.6 m
for the shoulders. A minimum width of 2.5 m is recommended for 2-lane rural highways in India.
Parking lanes
Parking lanes are provided in urban lanes for side parking. Parallel parking is preferred because it is safe
for the vehicles moving on the road. The parking lane should have a minimum of 3.0 m width in the case of
parallel parking.
Bus-bays
Bus bays are provided by recessing the kerbs for bus stops. They are provided so that they do not
obstruct the movement of vehicles in the carriage way. They should be at least 75 meters away from the
intersection so that the traffic near the intersections is not affected by the bus-bay.

Service roads
Service roads or frontage roads give access to access controlled highways like freeways and
expressways. They run parallel to the highway and will be usually isolated by a separator and access to the
highway will be provided only at selected points. These roads are provided to avoid congestion in the
expressways and also the speed of the traffic in those lanes is not reduced.
Cycle track
 Cycle tracks are provided in urban areas when the volume of cycle traffic is high Minimum width of 2
meter is required, which may be increased by 1 meter for every additional track.

Footpath
Footpaths are exclusive right of way to pedestrians, especially in urban areas. They are provided for the safety of the
pedestrians when both the pedestrian traffic and vehicular traffic is high. Minimum width is 1.5 meter and may be
increased based on the traffic. The footpath should be either as smooth as the pavement or more smoother than that
to induce the pedestrian to use the footpath.
Guard rails
They are provided at the edge of the shoulder usually when the road is on an embankment. They serve to
prevent the vehicles from running off the embankment, especially when the height of the fill exceeds 3 m.
Various designs of guard rails are there. Guard stones painted in alternate black and white are usually used.
They also give better visibility of curves at night under headlights of vehicles.

Width of formation
Width of formation or roadway width is the sum of the widths of pavements or carriage way including
separators and shoulders. This does not include the extra land in formation/cutting.

Right of way
Right of way (ROW) or land width is the width of land acquired for the road, along its alignment. It
should be adequate to accommodate all the cross-sectional elements of the highway and may reasonably
provide for future development. To prevent ribbon development along highways, control lines and building
lines may be provided. Control line is a line which represents the nearest limits of future uncontrolled building
activity in relation to a road. Building line represents a line on either side of the road, between which and the
road no building activity is permitted at all. The right of way width is governed by:

 Width of formation: It depends on the category of the highway and width of roadway and road margins.
 Height of embankment or depth of cutting: It is governed by the topography and the vertical alignment.
 Side slopes of embankment or cutting: It depends on the height of the slope, soil type etc.
 Drainage system and their size which depends on rainfall, topography etc.
 Sight distance considerations : On curves etc. there is restriction to the visibility on the inner side of the
curve due to the presence of some obstructions like building structures etc.
 Reserve land for future widening: Some land has to be acquired in advance anticipating future
developments like widening of the road.

Sight distance
Overview
The safe and efficient operation of vehicles on the road depends very much on the visibility of the road ahead of
the driver. Thus the geometric design of the road should be done such that any obstruction on the road length
could be visible to the driver from some distance ahead . This distance is said to be the sight distance.

Types of sight distance

Sight distance available from a point is the actual distance along the road surface, over which a driver from a
specified height above the carriage way has visibility of stationary or moving objects. Three sight distance
situations are considered for design:

 Stopping sight distance (SSD) or the absolute minimum sight distance

 Intermediate sight distance (ISD) is defined as twice SSD
 Overtaking sight distance (OSD) for safe overtaking operation
 Head light sight distance is the distance visible to a driver during night driving under the illumination of
head lights
  Safe sight distance to enter into an intersection

The most important consideration in all these is that at all times the driver traveling at the design speed of
the highway must have sufficient carriageway distance within his line of vision to allow him to stop his vehicle
before colliding with a slowly moving or stationary object appearing suddenly in his own traffic lane.
The computation of sight distance depends on:

1. Reaction time of the driver

Reaction time of a driver is the time taken from the instant the object is visible to the driver to the instant
when the brakes are applied. The total reaction time may be split up into four components based on PIEV
theory. In practice, all these times are usually combined into a total perception-reaction time suitable for design
purposes as well as for easy measurement. Many of the studies shows that drivers require about 1.5 to 2 secs
under normal conditions. However, taking into consideration the variability of driver characteristics, a higher
value is normally used in design. For example, IRC suggests a reaction time of 2.5 secs.
2. Efficiency of brakes
The speed of the vehicle very much affects the sight distance. Higher the speed, more time will be required
to stop the vehicle. Hence it is evident that, as the speed increases, sight distance also increases.
The efficiency of the brakes depends upon the age of the vehicle, vehicle characteristics etc. If the brake
efficiency is 100%, the vehicle will stop the moment the brakes are applied. But practically, it is not possible to
achieve 100% brake efficiency. Therefore the sight distance required will be more when the efficiency of brakes
are less. Also for safe geometric design, we assume that the vehicles have only 50% brake efficiency.

3. Frictional resistance between the tyre and the road

The frictional resistance between the tyre and road plays an important role to bring the vehicle to stop.
When the frictional resistance is more, the vehicles stop immediately. Thus sight required will be less. No
separate provision for brake efficiency is provided while computing the sight distance. This is taken into
account along with the factor of longitudinal friction. IRC has specified the value of longitudinal friction in
between 0.35 to 0.4.

4. Gradient of the road

Gradient of the road also affects the sight distance. While climbing up a gradient, the vehicle can stop
immediately. Therefore, sight distance required is less. While descending a gradient, gravity also comes into
action and more time will be required to stop the vehicle. Sight distance required will be more in this case.

Stopping Sight Distance (SSD)

Stopping sight distance (SSD) is the minimum sight distance available on a highway at any spot having
sufficient length to enable the driver to stop a vehicle traveling at design speed, safely without collision with
any other obstruction.
Safe stopping distance and is one of the important measures in traffic engineering.
It is the distance a vehicle travels from the point at which a situation is first perceived to the time the
deceleration is complete. Drivers must have adequate time if they are to suddenly respond to a situation. Thus,
in highway design, sight distance at least equal to the safe stopping distance should be provided.

The stopping sight distance is the sum of lag distance and the braking distance.
 Lag distance is the distance the vehicle travelled during the reaction time t and is given by vt, where v is
the velocity in m/sec2.
 Braking distance is the distance travelled by the vehicle during braking operation. For a level road this is
obtained by equating the work done in stopping the vehicle and the kinetic energy of the vehicle.
Overtaking Sight Distance(OSD)
The overtaking sight distance is the minimum distance open to the vision of the driver of a vehicle
intending to overtake the slow vehicle ahead safely against the traffic in the opposite direction. The overtaking
sight distance or passing sight distance is measured along the center line of the road over 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 that affect the OSD are:

 Velocities of the overtaking vehicle, overtaken vehicle and of the vehicle coming in the opposite
direction.
 Spacing between vehicles, which in-turn depends on the speed
 Skill and reaction time of the driver
 Rate of acceleration of overtaking vehicle
 Gradient of the road
Analysis of OSD on a two lane road with two way traffic:

From A1 to A2, the distance ‘d1’ (m) travelled by overtaking vehicle A at reduced speed ‘V b’ (m/s) during
reaction time ‘t’ (sec),
d1= Vb X t
• IRC suggest reaction time t of driver as 2 sec ,
d1= 2Vb
• From A2 to A3, vehicle A starts accelerating, shift to adjoining lane, overtakes vehicle B, and shift back to its
original lane during overtaking time ‘T’ (sec) and travel distance ‘d2’ (m).
From A2 to A3, the distance ‘d2’ (m) is further split into three parts viz;
d2= (s+b+s)
d2= (b+2s)

• The minimum spacing ‘s’ (m)between vehicles depends on their speed and is given by empirical formula,
s=(0.7Vb + 6)
• The distance covered by the slow vehicle B travelling at a speed of ‘vb’ (m/s) in time ‘T’ (sec) is,
b= Vb X T
The overtaking time ‘T’ (sec) is calculated as;
d2=(b+2s)=(VbT+aT2/2)
 b=Vb T , 2s=aT2/2
• From C1 to C2, distance travelled by vehicle C moving at design speed ‘v’ (m/s) during time ‘T’ (sec) is given
by,
d3=v X T
Thus overtaking sight distance (OSD) is,
OSD=(d1+d2+d3)
OSD= (Vb X t) + (Vb X T +2s) +(v X T)
• If speed is in kmph,
OSD= (0.28Vb X t)+(0.28Vb X T+2s)+(0.28V X T)

• In case speed of overtaken vehicle is not given it is assumed 16 kmph less than design speed of the highway.

where,
s=spacing of vehicles
t=reaction time of driver = 2sec
v =design speed in m/sec
V= design speed in kmph
vb=initial speed of overtaking vehicle in m/sec
A=average acceleration in kmph/sec
a=average acceleration in m/sec2

Overtaking Zones
Overtaking zones are provided when OSD cannot be provided throughout the length of the highway. These are
zones dedicated for overtaking operation, marked with wide roads. The desirable length of overtaking zones is 5
time OSD and the minimum is three times OSD Overtaking opportunity for vehicles moving at design speed
should be given at frequent intervals as possible.

Sight distance at intersections:

At intersections where two or more roads meet, visibility should be provided for the drivers approaching
the intersection from either sides. They should be able to perceive a hazard and stop the vehicle if required.
Stopping sight distance for each road can be computed from the design speed. The sight distance should be
provided such that the drivers on either side should be able to see each other.
Design of sight distance at intersections may be used on three possible conditions:
  Enabling approaching vehicle to change the speed
 Enabling approaching vehicle to stop
 Enabling stopped vehicle to cross a main road

Design of Horizontal Alignment:

Various design elements to be considered in the horizontal alignment are :
 Design speed
 Horizontal curve
 Super elevation
 Type and length of transition curves
 Widening of pavement on curves
 Set-back distance
Horizontal curve
 A horizontal highway curve is a curve in plan to provide change in direction to the central line of
a road.
 When a vehicle traverses a horizontal curve, the centrifugal force acts horizontally outwards
through the centre of gravity of the vehicle.
 The centrifugal force is given by the equation: P = Wv²∕gR
The presence of horizontal curve imparts centrifugal force which is reactive force acting outward on a vehicle
negotiating it. Centrifugal force depends on speed and radius of the horizontal curve and is counteracted to a
certain extent by transverse friction between the tyre and pavement surface. On a curved road, this force tends
to cause the vehicle to overrun or to slide outward from the centre of road curvature. For proper design of the
curve, an understanding of the forces acting on a vehicle taking a horizontal curve is necessary.
where,
P=centrifugal force in kg
W=Weight of the vehicle in kg
R=radius of the circular curve in m
v=speed of the vehicle in m/s
g=acceleration due to gravity=9.8 m/s2
P/W is known as the centrifugal ratio or the impact factor.
The centrifugal ratio is thus equal to v²∕gR.
The centrifugal force acting on a vehicle negotiating a horizontal curve has two effects:
i. Tendency to overturn the vehicle outwards about the outer wheels
ii. Tendency to skid the vehicle laterally, outwards

Super Elevation (e):

In order to counteract the effect of centrifugal force and to reduce the tendency of the vehicle to overturn or
skid, the outer edge of the pavement is raised with respect to the inner edge, thus providing a transverse slope
throughout the length of the horizontal curve.
 This transverse inclination to the pavement surface is known as Super elevation or cant or banking.
 The Super elevation ‘e’ is expressed as the ratio of the height of outer edge with respect to the horizontal
width.
For equilibrium condition,
P cosө=W sinө+FA+FB
P cosө=W sinө+ [Link] + [Link]
P cosө=W sinө+f(RA+RB)
P cosө=W sinө+f(W cos ө+P sin ө)
P(cosө – f sinө)=W sinө+f Wcosө

Dividing by Wcosө, P/W(1- f tanө)=tanө+f

Centrifugal ratio =P/W= tanө+f /(1-f tanө)

The value of coefficient of lateral friction ‘f’ is taken as 0.15 and tanө i.e. super elevation seldom exceeds 7-10%.
Therefore, Centrifugal ratio =P/W = tanө+f
P/W = e + f ……(i)
but P/W = v²∕gR ……(ii)
Therefore, the general equation for the design of super elevation is given by,

e + f = v²∕gR

If ‘V’ speed of the vehicle is in kmph,

e + f = V²∕ 127R
where,
e=rate of Superelevation=tanӨ
f = design value of lateral friction coefficient = 0.15
v = speed of the vehicle, m/sec
R = radius of the horizontal curve, m
g = acceleration due to gravity = 9.81 m/sec²

Maximum Superelevation
 Indian Roads Congress (IRC) had fixed the maximum limit of Superelevation in plan and rolling
terrains and is snow bound areas as 7.0 %.
 On hill roads not bound by snow a maximum Superelevation upto10% is recommended.
 On urban road stretches with frequent intersections, it may be necessary to limit the maximum
Superelevation to 4.0 %.

Minimum Superelevation
From drainage consideration it is necessary to have a minimum cross slope to drain off the surface
water. If the calculated superelevation is equal to or less than the camber of the road surface, then the minimum
superelevation to be provided on horizontal curve may be limited to the camber of the surface.

Steps For Superelevation Design

Step-I:
The superelevation for 75 percent of design speed is calculated, neglecting the friction.
e =(0.75v)²∕ gR …..if ‘v’ is in m/sec
e =(V)²∕ 225R …..if ‘V’ is in kmph

Step-II: If the calculated value of ‘e’ is less than 7% or 0.07 the value so obtained is provided. If the value of
‘e’ exceeds 7% or 0.07 then provides maximum superelevation equal to 7% or 0.07 and proceed with step-III or
IV.

Step-III: Check the coefficient of friction developed for the maximum value of e =0.07 at the full value of
design speed.
f =v²∕ gR - 0.07 …..if ‘v’ is in m/sec
f =V²∕ 127R - 0.07 …..if ‘V’ is in kmph
If the value of ‘f’ thus calculated is less than 0.15,
the super elevation of 0.07 is safe for the design speed. If not, calculate the restricted speed as given in Step -IV.

Step-IV: The allowable speed at the curve is calculated by considering the design coefficient of lateral friction
and the maximum superelevation.

e + f =0.07+0.15=va²∕ gR=Va²∕ 127R

e + f =0.22=va²∕ gR = Va²∕ 127R
 If the allowed speed, as calculated above is higher than the design speed, then the design is adequate
and provides a superelevation of ‘e’ equal to 0.07.
If the allowable speed is less than the design speed, the speed is limited to the allowed speed calculated
above and appropriate warning sign and speed limit regulation sign are installed to restrict and regulate the
speed.

Radius of Horizontal Curve:

e + f = v²∕gR = V²∕ 127R

If Maxm. allowable superelevation rate has been fixed as 7% and lateral friction f is 0.15 then,
0.07 + 0.15 = v²∕gR = V²∕ 127R
0.22= v²∕gR = V²∕ 127R

If design speed is decided ruling and minimum radius is calculated as,

Rruling = v²∕g(e + f) = V²∕ 127(e + f)

Rmin = v’²∕g(e + f) = V’²∕ 127(e + f)
where, e=rate of Superelevation
f = design value of lateral friction coefficient = 0.15
v or V= design speed of the vehicle, m/sec or kmph
v’ or V’= minimum design speed of the vehicle, m/sec or kmph
g = acceleration due to gravity = 9.81 m/sec²

Widening of pavement on horizontal curves:

On horizontal curves, especially when they are Less than 300m radii, it is common to widen the pavement
slightly more than the normal width.

-Widening is needed for the following reasons:

a) An automobile has a rigid wheel base and only the front wheels can be turned, when this vehicle takes a
turn to negotiate a horizontal curve, the rear wheel do not follow the same path as that of the front
wheels. This phenomenon is called off tracking.
b) While two vehicle cross or overtake at horizontal curve there is psychological tendency to maintain a
greater clearance between the vehicle for safety.
c) For greater visibility at curve, the driver have tendency not to follow the central path of the lane, but to
use the outer side at the beginning of the curve.
d) At higher speed superelevation and lateral friction cannot counteract centrifugal force and skidding may
occur of extra widening on horizontal curves:

The extra widening of pavement on horizontal curves is divided into two parts:
a. Mechanical widening/Off tracking
b. Psychological widening

Objects of providing transition curve:

A transition curve which is introduced between straight and a circular curve will help in:
a. Gradually introducing centrifugal force.
b. Gradually introducing designed superelevation.
c. Gradually introducing extra widening.
d. To enable the driver turn steering gradually for his own comfort and safety
Vertical Alignment:
 The vertical alignment is the elevation or profile of the centre line of the road.
 The vertical alignment consists of grades and vertical curves.
The vertical alignment of a highway influences:
i. Vehicle speed
ii. Acceleration and deceleration
iii. Sight distance
iv. Vehicle operation cost
v. Comfort while travelling at high speeds

Gradients:
A. Gradient is the rate of rise or fall along the length of road with respect to the horizontal.
B. It is expressed as a ratio of 1 in n or also as percentage such as n%.

Types Of Gradients:
Gradients are divided into four categories:
a. Ruling gradient
b. Limiting gradient
c. Exceptional gradient
d. Minimum gradient
a. Ruling gradient:
 Ruling gradient is the maximum gradient within which the designer attempts to design the vertical
profile of a road.
 Ruling gradient is also known as ‘Design gradient’.
 For selection of ruling gradient factors such as type of terrain, length of the grade, speed, pulling power
of vehicle etc are considered.
b. Limiting gradient:
Steeper than ruling gradient. In hilly roads, it may be frequently necessary to exceed ruling gradient and adopt
limiting gradient, it depends on
a. Topography
b. Cost in constructing the road
c. Exceptional gradient:

 Exceptional gradient are very steeper gradients given at unavoidable situations.

 They should be limited for short stretches not exceeding about 100 m at a stretch.

d. Minimum gradient:
 This is important only at locations where surface drainage is important.
 Camber will take care of the lateral drainage.
 But the longitudinal drainage along the side drains require some slope for smooth flow of water.
 Therefore minimum gradient is provided for drainage purpose and it depends on the rainfall,
type of soil and other site conditions.
 A minimum of 1in500 may be sufficient for concrete drain and 1in 200 or 1 in 100 for open soil drains.
Grade Compensation:
 When sharp horizontal curve is to be introduced on a road which has already maximum permissible
gradient, then gradient should be decreased to compensate for loss of tractive efforts due to curve.
 This reduction in gradient at horizontal curve is called grade compensation.
Grade compensation, % = 30+R/R
IRC gave the following specification for the grade compensation:
[Link] compensation is not required for grades flatter than 4% because the loss of tractive force is negligible.
[Link] maximum grade compensation is limited to 75/R%.
Compensated gradient = ruling gradient –grade compensation
 CHAPTER-3
Road Pavements

Road Materials:
Difference types of road materials in use: soil, aggregates, and binders
A wide variety of materials are used in the construction of roads these are soils (naturally occurring or
processed), aggregates (fine aggregates or coarse aggregates obtained from rocks), binders like lime, bituminous
materials, and cement, and miscellaneous materials used as admixtures for improved performance of roads
under heavy loads and traffic.
1. Soil:
Soil constitutes the primary material for the foundation, subgrade, or even the pavement (for low-cost roads
with low traffic in rural areas). When the highway is constructed on an embankment at the desired level, soil
constitutes the primary embankment material; further, since all structures have to ultimately rest on and transmit
loads to ‘mother earth’, soil and rock also serve as foundation materials.
Need for Soil Classification:
Soil deposits in nature are never homogenous in character; wide variations are observed in their properties and
behaviour. Soils that exhibit similar average properties may be grouped as a class. Classification of soil is
necessary to obtain an appropriate and fairly accurate idea of the properties and behaviour of a soil type.
(a) Textural classification
(b) PRA system of classification (Group index method)
(c) Unified soil classification System
(d) Indian Standard Soil classification system

2. Stone Aggregates:
Stone aggregate, or mineral aggregate, as it is called, is the most important component of the materials used in
the construction of roads. These aggregates are derived from rocks, which are formed by the cementation of
minerals by the forces of nature.
Stone aggregates are invariably derived by breaking the naturally occurring rocks to the required sizes. They are
used for granular bases, sub-bases, as part of bituminous mixes and cement concrete; they are also the primary
component of a relatively cheaper road, called water-bound macadam.

Desirable Properties of Sand Aggregates:

The following properties are desirable in soil aggregates used the construction of roads:
(i) Strength:
It is the resistance to crushing which the aggregates used in road construction, especially in the top layers and
wearing course, have to withstand the stresses due to wheel loads of the traffic in addition to wear and tear.
(ii) Hardness:
It is the resistance to abrasion of the aggregate at the surface. The constant rubbing or abrading action between
the tyres of moving vehicles and the exposed aggregate at the road surface should be resisted adequately.
(iii) Toughness:
This is the resistance to impact due to moving traffic. Heavily loaded trucks and other vehicles cause heavy
impact loads on the road surface while moving at high speeds, and while accelerating and decelerating. Even
steel-typed vehicles, though moving slow, cause heavy impact on the aggregates exposed at the surface. Hence,
resistance to such impact forces is a desirable quality.
(iv) Durability:
It is the resistance to the process of disintegration due to the weathering action of the forces of nature. The
property by virtue of which the aggregate withstands weathering is called soundness. This is also a desirable
property.
(v) Cementation:
It is the ability of the aggregate to form its own binding material under traffic, providing resistance to lateral
displacement. Limestone and laterite are examples of stones with good cementing quality. This becomes
important in the case of water-bound macadam roads.
(vi) Appropriate Shape:
Aggregates maybe either rounded, cubical, angular, flaky, or elongated. Each shape is appropriate for a certain
use. Too flaky and too elongated aggregates have less strength and durability; so they are not preferred in road
construction.
Rounded aggregates are good for cement concrete because of the workability such aggregates provide. Cubical
or angular aggregates have good interlocking properties; since flexible pavements derive their stability due to
interlocking, such aggregates are the preferred type for construction. Thus, the appropriate shape for a particular
use is also a desirable property.
(vii) Adhesion with Bitumen:
The aggregates used in bituminous pavements should have less affinity to water than to bitumen; otherwise, the
bituminous coating on the surface of the aggregate will get stripped off in the presence of water. So,
hydrophobic characteristic is a desirable property for aggregates to be used in the construction of bituminous
roads.
(viii) Attrition:
This is mutual rubbing of aggregates under traffic; adequate resistance to attrition is a desirable property.
(ix) Texture:
This is a measure of the degree of fineness or smoothness of the surface of the aggregate.
Gravels from river beds are fairly smooth; as a rule, fine grained rock is highly resistant to wear and is preferred
for surface courses.
3. Bituminous Materials:
Bitumen was used as a bonding and water-proofing agent thousands of years ago. However, the use of bitumen
for road-making picked up only in the nineteenth century. As the quest for fuels like petroleum to run
automobiles grew and the distillation of crude oil emerged as a major refining industry, the residues known as
bitumen and tar found increasing use in constructing bituminous surfaces, which provided superior riding
surface.

Important Properties of Bitumen:

 Predominantly hydrocarbons, with small quantities of sulphur, nitrogen and metals.
 Mostly (up to 99.9%) soluble in carbon disulphide (CS2), and insoluble in water.
 Softens on heating and gets hardened on cooling.
 Highly impermeable to water.
 Chemically inert and unaffected by most acids, alkalis and salts.
 No specific boiling point, melting point or freezing point; a form of ‘softening point’ is used in their
characterisation.
 Although generally hydrophobic (water repellent), they may be made hydrophilic (water liking) by the
addition of a small quantity of surface-active agent.
 Most bitumens are colloidal in nature.
Desirable Properties of Bitumen as a Road Material:

 Workability – Bitumen should be fluid enough at the time of mixing so that the aggregates are fully
coated by the binder. Fluidity is achieved either by heating or by cutting back with a thin flux or by
emulsifying the bitumen.
 Durability – There should be little change in viscosity within the usual range of temperatures in the
locality.
  Volatile constituents in bitumen should not be lost excessively at higher temperatures to ensure
durability.
 It should have enough ductility to avoid brittleness and cracking.
 Strength and adhesion – The bitumen should have good affinity to the aggregates and should not be
stripped off in the continued presence of water.
 Cost-effectiveness.
A few more terms relating to bitumen/asphalt are:

Straight-Run Bitumen: Bitumen derived from the refining of petroleum for which the viscosity has not been
adjusted by blending with flux oil or bysoftening with any cut-back oil or by any other treatment. It generally
has high viscosity.
Asphalt Cement:
A binder consisting of bitumen, or a mixture of lake asphalt and bitumen or flux oils, specially prepared as per
prescribed quality and consistency for direct use in paving, usually in the hot condition.
Oxidised or Blown Bitumen:
Bitumen obtained by further treatment of straight-run bitumen by running it, while hot, into a vertical column
and blowing air through it. In this process, it attains a rubbery consistency with a higher softening point than
before.
Cut-Back Bitumen:
Asphalt/bitumen dissolved in naphtha or kerosene to lower the viscosity and increase the workability.
Emulsified Bitumen:
A mixture in which asphalt cement, in a finely dispersed state, is suspended in chemically treated water.
Liquid Bitumen:
Include cut-backs in naphtha and kerosene, as also emulsified asphalts
Cut-Back Bitumen:
Cut-back bitumen is one, the viscosity of which is reduced by adding a volatile diluent. Penetration grade
bitumens require to be heated to a specified temperature to lower its viscosity before it is applied on a road to
facilitate coating the pre-heated aggregate. To obviate the need for heating the aggregate, cut-backs come in
handy. Upon application, the volatiles slowly evaporate, and leave behind the original bituminous binder.

There are three types of cut-backs based on the diluent (dilutant or solvent) used:

1. Rapid-curing (RC) cutback – Bitumen blended with gasoline or naphtha, (highly volatile, low viscosity)
2. Medium-curing (MC) cutback – Bitumen blended with kerosene or coal tar creosote oil (medium viscosity)
3. Slow-curing (SC) cutback – Bitumen blended with gas oil (low viscosity, highly viscous)

Bitumen Emulsions:
A bitumen emulsion is obtained by blending bitumen with water and an additive called an emulsifier. The
emulsified suspension contains dispersed minute particles of bitumen (that is, oil in water). In a bituminous
emulsion, bitumen is the ‘dispersed’ phase (minutely subdivided particles), while water is the ‘continuous’
phase in which it is not soluble. The amount of bitumen to be mixed with water may range from 40 to 70%
depending upon the intended use of the suspension.

Bitumen emulsions, like cutback bitumens, are also classified into three types based on their setting
times:

1. Rapid-setting emulsions (RS)

2. Medium-setting emulsions (MS)
3. Slow-setting emulsions (SS)
Setting, in this context, means separation of the emulsion. When the water in the emulsion evaporates,
the minute bitumen particles in the emulsion coat the surface of the aggregates; curing takes place, by which the
compacted layer of the emulsion-aggregate mix hardens and attains strength. Therefore, rapid-setting emulsion
sets and cures in a relatively quick manner.

“IS: 3117-2004: Anionic bitumen emulsions” covers anionic emulsions, while “IS: 8887- 2004: Cationic
bitumen emulsions” covers cationic emulsions.

Tar:
Tar is a black or brown to black, viscous, non-crystalline material having binding property. This is, therefore,
the other category of bituminous materials.
Tar is obtained from the destructive distillation of organic materials such as coal, petroleum, oil, wood
and peat, in the absence of air at about 1000°C. It is completely soluble in carbon tetrachloride (CCl4). It
contains more volatile constituents than bitumen and is therefore more susceptible to change in temperature.
Generally, tar is used for surface dressing on the wearing course since it has good adhesion in damp conditions.

Some more terms relating to tar are:

i. Coal tar – Tar produced by the destructive distillation of bituminous coal.
ii. Coke-oven tar – A variety of coal tar obtained as a by-product from the destructive distillation of coal in
the production of coke.
iii. Oil-gas tar – A petroleum tar produced by cracking oils at high temperature in the production of oil-gas.
iv. Water-gas tar – A petroleum tar produced by cracking oils at high temperature in the production of
carburetted water-gas.
v. Refined tar – Produced from crude tar by distillation to remove water and to produce a residue of desired
consistency.
vi. Road tar – A tar refined in quality and consistency for use in paving of roads.
vii. Pitch – Black or dark brown solid cementitious residue which gradually liquefies when heated and
which is produced by distilling off the volatile constituents from tar.

Specifications for Road Tars:

Indian Standards classify road tars for paving purposes into five grades — RT1, RT2, RT3, RT4, and RT5,
meant for specific purposes.

Low Temperature Tar:

The coal-tar produced in the manufacture of coking coal requires carbonation at high temperatures above
1000°C. In view of the increasing demand for road tars in recent years, a new technology known as low
temperature carbonisation has come into vogue.
In this, the carbonisation of coal is carried out in the temperature range of 600°-750°C in a smokeless fuel
process. The crude tar thus produced is successfully used for making road tars; these are known as low
temperature tars.
Bitumen versus Tar:

A comparison of bitumen and tar is given below:

I. Aggregates coated with tar exhibit lower stripping action than those coated with bitumen.
II. Tar is more susceptible to temperature than bitumen. It becomes liquid at relatively lower temperature.
III. Tar is not easily dissolved in petroleum solvents; so it can be preferred for paving parking areas, where
oils might drip from vehicles.
IV. Since more setting time is required for tar, it may be processed at a mixing plant and carried to the
construction site.
V. In view of the higher free carbon content, tar is more brittle than bitumen.
VI. As tars have more phenol content, they can get more easily oxidised than bitumen.
VII. At higher temperatures, tar may be more easily affected than bitumen.
VIII. As more time is required for tar to set, tar-paved roads need to be closed to traffic for a longer time.
The tests used to evaluate the strength properties of soils may be broadly divided into three groups:
 Shear tests
 Bearing tests
 Penetration tests

Shear tests are usually carried out on relatively small soil samples in the laboratory. In order to find out the
strength properties of soil, a number of representative samples from different locations are tested. Some of the
commonly known shear tests are direct shear test, triaxial compression test, and unconfined compression test.

Bearing tests are loading tests carried out on sub grade soils in-situ with a load bearing area. The results of
the bearing tests are influenced by variations in the soil properties within the stressed soil mass underneath and
hence the overall stability of the part of the soil mass stressed could be studied.

Penetration tests may be considered as small scale bearing tests in which the size of the loaded area is
relatively much smaller and ratio of the penetration to the size of the loaded area is much greater than the ratios
in bearing tests. The penetration tests are carried out in the field or in the laboratory.

California Bearing Ratio: methods of finding CBR valued in the laboratory and at site and their
significance

California Bearing Ratio Test(CBR)

California Bearing Ratio (CBR) test was developed by the California Division of Highway as a method of
classifying and evaluating soil-sub grade and base course materials for flexible pavements. CBR test, an
empirical test, has been used to determine the material properties for pavement design. Empirical tests measure
the strength of the material and are not a true representation of the resilient modulus. It is a penetration test
wherein a standard piston, having an area of 3 in (or 50 mm diameter), is used to penetrate the soil at a standard
rate of 1.25 mm/minute. The pressure up to a penetration of 12.5 mm and it's ratio to the bearing value of a
standard crushed rock is termed as the CBR.
In most cases, CBR decreases as the penetration increases. The ratio at 2.5 mm penetration is used as the CBR.
In some case, the ratio at 5 mm may be greater than that at 2.5 mm. If this occurs, the ratio at 5 mm should be
used. The CBR is a measure of resistance of a material to penetration of standard plunger under controlled
density and moisture conditions. The test procedure should be strictly adhered if high degree of reproducibility
is desired. The CBR test may be conducted in re-moulded or undisturbed specimen in the laboratory. The test is
simple and has been extensively investigated for field correlations of flexible pavement thickness requirement.

TESTS ON AGGREGATES
1. Flakiness and Elongation Index Test
These tests assess the shape characteristics of aggregate particles, which affect the workability and
strength of road surfaces.
a) Flakiness Index Test
Purpose: Measures the percentage of flaky particles in a sample.
Flaky Particle: Thickness < 0.6 times the mean sieve size.
Apparatus: Flakiness Gauge, IS sieves, weighing balance.

Procedure:
 Take aggregates of various size fractions.
 Pass them through a flakiness gauge
 Weigh flaky particles.

Calculate:
Flakiness Index=(Weight of flaky particles / Total weight of sample)×100
b) Elongation Index Test :

Purpose: Measures the percentage of elongated particles.

Elongated Particle: Length > 1.8 times the mean sieve size.
Apparatus: Elongation gauge.

Procedure:

 Similar to the flakiness test, but using the elongation gauge.

 Weigh elongated particles and compute:

Elongation Index=(Weight of elongated particles /Total weight)×100

 Significance: High indices indicate poor shape, affecting compaction and stability.

2. Angularity Number Test

Purpose: Determines the angularity (sharpness of edges) of aggregates.

More angular → better interlocking → stronger pavement.

Procedure:
 Take a known weight of aggregates.
 Measure the volume displaced in a cylinder (volume of aggregates + voids).

Calculate angularity number using:

Angularity Number= {(100−Percent Voids) / 0.6}−10
 Percent voids is obtained by comparing actual volume with theoretical solid volume.
 Range: 0 (rounded aggregates) to 11 (highly angular).

B. TESTS ON BITUMEN
1. Penetration Test
Purpose: Measures the hardness or softness of bitumen.
Penetration: Depth (in tenths of a mm) to which a standard needle penetrates under a 100g load in 5 seconds at
25°C.
Procedure:
 Heat bitumen and pour into a container.
 Allow to cool at room temp.
 Place needle and apply 100g load for 5 seconds.
 Measure depth.
Example: Penetration of 80 means 8 mm depth → softer bitumen.

2. Ductility Test
Purpose: Measures the elongation property of bitumen.
Ductility: Distance in cm that a bitumen thread can stretch before breaking.
Procedure:
 Prepare standard briquette of bitumen.
 Place in water bath at 27°C.
 Pull ends at 50 mm/min.
 Measure the length at breaking point.
 Minimum ductility for road bitumen: Usually ≥ 75 cm.

3. Flash and Fire Point Test

Purpose: Determines the temperature at which bitumen gives off vapors that momentarily catch fire (flash) and
then sustain fire (fire point).
Apparatus: Pensky-Marten’s apparatus.
Procedure:
 Heat bitumen slowly.
 Pass a test flame at intervals.
Record:
 Flash Point: Temp when vapors ignite briefly.
 Fire Point: Temp when vapors continue to burn.
 Significance: Indicates the safety in handling and heating.

4. Softening Point Test

Purpose: Measures the temperature at which bitumen softens (not melts).
Method: Ring and Ball Test.
Procedure:
 Bitumen is poured into a brass ring.
 Steel ball is placed on top.
 Heat water or glycerine bath at 5°C/min.
 Record temp when bitumen softens and ball touches the base plate.
 Typical Range: 35°C–70°C depending on bitumen grade

HIGHWAY PAVEMENT
A highway pavement is a structure consisting of superimposed layers of processed materials above the
natural soil sub-grade, whose primary function is to distribute the applied vehicle loads to the sub-grade. The
pavement structure should be able to provide a surface of acceptable riding quality, adequate skid resistance,
favorable light reflecting characteristics, and low noise pollution. The ultimate aim is to ensure that the
transmitted stresses due to wheel load are sufficiently reduced, so that they will not exceed bearing capacity of
the sub-grade. Two types of pavements are generally recognized as serving this purpose, namely flexible
pavements and rigid pavements. This chapter gives an overview of pavement types, layers, and their functions,
and pavement failures. Improper design of pavements leads to early failure of pavements affecting the riding
quality.

Purpose of a Road Pavement

I. The main purpose is to carry heavy wheel loads of vehicular traffic.
II. To distribute the vehicular load over a large area of the underlying sub-grade soil.
III. Generally to provide a smooth road pavement surface.
IV. To prevent ill effects of weathering agencies on sub-grade soil.

Requirements of a pavement
 An ideal pavement should meet the following requirements:
 Sufficient thickness to distribute the wheel load stresses to a safe value on the sub-grade soil,
 Structurally strong to withstand all types of stresses imposed upon it,
 Adequate coefficient of friction to prevent skidding of vehicles,
 Smooth surface to provide comfort to road users even at high speed,
 Produce least noise from moving vehicles,
 Dust proof surface so that traffic safety is not impaired by reducing visibility,
 Impervious surface, so that sub-grade soil is well protected, and
 Long design life with low maintenance cost.

Component Parts of Road Pavement Structure

  Sub-grade or Formation
 Sub-base
 Base Course or Foundation Course
 Base Coat or Intermediate Course
 Wearing Course

1. Sub-grade :
Definition : The finished and compacted earthwork on which a road pavement rests is called as sub-grade or
formation.
Functions of Sub-grade:
To provide support to the pavements.
Sub-grade carries entire load of pavement including the traffic.
2. Sub-base :
Definition : A layer of granular material provided in between the sub-grade and the base course in a road
pavement is called sub-base.
Functions of Sub-base :
It improves the bearing capacity of sub-grade.
It improves drainage and keep check on capillary rise of subsoil water.
3. Base Course :
Definition : A layer of boulders or bricks provided in double layer over the sub-base or immediately over the
sub-grade in the absence of sub-base in a pavement is called base course
Functions of Base Course:
To withstand high shearing stresses develop due to the impact of traffic on the wearing course.
To act as foundation to the pavement, which transfers load over the pavement surface to the sub-base and sub-
grade lying underneath.
4. Base Coat :
Definition : The layer of hard stones provided in between the base course and the wearing course in a road
pavement is called base coat or bearing course or intermediate coat.
Functions of Base Coat :
Generally to transmit the load over the large area of the base course.
To act as layer of transmission material.
5. Wearing Course :
The top most layer of pavement directly exposed to traffic is called as wearing course or surfacing.
Functions of Wearing Course :
 The main function of wearing course is to provide impervious layers so that entry of water to the base
course can be prevented.
 Moreover the entire traffic load is safely distributed over the base course.
 It acts as impervious layer, thus avoids the entry of water to the base course.
Types of Road Pavement
The pavements can be classified based on the structural performance into two, flexible pavements and
rigid pavements. In flexible pavements, wheel loads are transferred by grain-to-grain contact of the aggregate
through the granular structure. The flexible pavement, having less flexural strength, acts like a flexible sheet
(e.g. bituminous road). On the contrary, in rigid pavements, wheel loads are transferred to sub-grade soil by
flexural strength of the pavement and the pavement acts like a rigid plate (e.g. cement concrete roads). In
addition to these, composite pavements are also available. A thin layer of flexible pavement over rigid
pavement is an ideal pavement with most desirable characteristics. However, such pavements are rarely used in
new construction because of high cost and complex analysis required.
1. Flexible Pavement
2. Rigid Pavement

Flexible pavements
Flexible pavements will transmit wheel load stresses to the lower layers by grain-to-grain transfer through the
points of contact in the granular structure
The wheel load acting on the pavement will be distributed to a wider area, and the stress decreases with the
depth. Taking advantage of this stress distribution characteristic, flexible pavements normally has many layers.
Hence, the design of flexible pavement uses the concept of layered system. Based on this, flexible pavement
may be constructed in a number of layers and the top layer has to be of best quality to sustain maximum
compressive stress, in addition to wear and tear. The lower layers will experience lesser magnitude of stress and
low quality material can be used. Flexible pavements are constructed using bituminous materials. These can be
either in the form of surface treatments (such as bituminous surface treatments generally found on low volume
roads) or, asphalt concrete surface courses (generally used on high volume roads such as national highways).
Flexible pavement layers reflect the deformation of the lower layers on to the surface layer (e.g., if there is any
undulation in sub-grade then it will be transferred to the surface layer). In the case of flexible pavement, the
design is based on overall performance of flexible pavement, and the stresses produced should be kept well
below the allowable stresses of each pavement layer.
Types of Flexible Pavements
The following types of construction have been used in flexible pavement:
 Conventional layered flexible pavement
 Full - depth asphalt pavement, and
 Contained rock asphalt mat (CRAM).
Conventional flexible pavements are layered systems with high quality expensive materials are placed in
the top where stresses are high, and low quality cheap materials are placed in lower layers.
Full - depth asphalt pavements are constructed by placing bituminous layers directly on the soil sub-grade. This
is more suitable when there is high traffic and local materials are not available.
Contained rock asphalt mats are constructed by placing dense/open graded aggregate layers in between two
asphalt layers. Modified dense graded asphalt concrete is placed above the sub-grade will significantly reduce
the vertical compressive strain on soil sub-grade and protect from surface water.

Typical layers of a flexible pavement

Typical layers of a conventional flexible pavement includes seal coat, surface course, tack coat, binder course,
prime coat, base course, sub-base course, compacted sub-grade, and natural sub-grade .
Seal Coat:
Seal coat is a thin surface treatment used to water-proof the surface and to provide skid resistance.
Tack Coat:
Tack coat is a very light application of asphalt, usually asphalt emulsion diluted with water. It provides proper
bonding between two layer of binder course and must be thin, uniformly cover the entire surface, and set very
fast.
Prime Coat:
Prime coat is an application of low viscous cutback bitumen to an absorbent surface like granular bases on
which binder layer is placed. It provides bonding between two layers. Unlike tack coat, prime coat penetrates
into the layer below, plugs the voids, and forms a water tight surface.

Surface course
  Surface course is the layer directly in contact with traffic loads and generally contains superior quality
materials. They are usually constructed with dense graded asphalt concrete(AC)
The functions and requirements of this layer are:
 It provides characteristics such as friction, smoothness, drainage, etc. Also it will prevent the entrance of
excessive quantities of surface water into the underlying base, sub-base and sub-grade,
 It must be tough to resist the distortion under traffic and provide a smooth and skid- resistant riding
surface, It must be water proof to protect the entire base and sub-grade from the weakening effect of
water.
Binder course
This layer provides the bulk of the asphalt concrete structure. It's chief purpose is to distribute load to the base
course The binder course generally consists of aggregates having less asphalt and doesn't require quality as high
as the surface course, so replacing a part of the surface course by the binder course results in more economical
design.
Base course
The base course is the layer of material immediately beneath the surface of binder course and it provides
additional load distribution and contributes to the sub-surface drainage It may be composed of crushed stone,
crushed slag, and other untreated or stabilized materials.
Sub-Base course
The sub-base course is the layer of material beneath the base course and the primary functions are to provide
structural support, improve drainage, and reduce the intrusion of fines from the sub-grade in the pavement
structure If the base course is open graded, then the sub-base course with more fines can serve as a filler
between sub-grade and the base course A sub-base course is not always needed or used. For example, a
pavement constructed over a high quality, stiff sub-grade may not need the additional features offered by a sub-
base course. In such situations, sub-base course may not be provided.
Sub-grade
The top soil or sub-grade is a layer of natural soil prepared to receive the stresses from the layers above. It is
essential that at no time soil sub-grade is overstressed. It should be compacted to the desirable density, near the
optimum moisture content.
Failure of flexible pavements
The major flexible pavement failures are fatigue cracking, rutting, and thermal cracking. The fatigue cracking of
flexible pavement is due to horizontal tensile strain at the bottom of the asphaltic concrete. The failure criterion
relates allowable number of load repetitions to tensile strain and this relation can be determined in the
laboratory fatigue test on asphaltic concrete specimens. Rutting occurs only on flexible pavements as indicated
by permanent deformation or rut depth along wheel load path. Two design methods have been used to control
rutting: one to limit the vertical compressive strain on the top of subgrade and other to limit rutting to a tolerable
amount (12 mm normally). Thermal cracking includes both low-temperature cracking and thermal fatigue
cracking

Rigid pavements
Rigid pavements have sufficient flexural strength to transmit the wheel load stresses to a wider area
below. A typical cross section of the rigid pavement is shown in Figure 3. Compared to flexible pavement, rigid
pavements are placed either directly on the prepared sub-grade or on a single layer of granular or stabilized
material. Since there is only one layer of material between the concrete and the sub-grade, this layer can be
called as base or sub-base course.
In rigid pavement, load is distributed by the slab action, and the pavement behaves like an elastic plate
resting on a viscous medium (Figure 4). Rigid pavements are constructed by Portland cement concrete (PCC)
and should be analyzed by plate theory instead of layer theory assuming an elastic plate resting on viscous
foundation. Plate theory is a simplified version of layer theory that assumes the concrete slab as a medium thick
plate which is plane before loading and to remain plane after loading. Bending of the slab due to wheel load and
temperature variation and the resulting tensile and flexural stress.
Types of Rigid Pavements
Rigid pavements can be classified into four types:
1. Jointed plain concrete pavement (JPCP),
2. Jointed reinforced concrete pavement (JRCP),
3. Continuous reinforced concrete pavement (CRCP), and
4. Pre-stressed concrete pavement (PCP).

1. Jointed Plain Concrete Pavement:

These are plain cement concrete pavements constructed with closely spaced contraction joints. Dowel bars or
aggregate interlocks are normally used for load transfer across joints. They normally has a joint spacing of 5 to
10m.
2. Jointed Reinforced Concrete Pavement:
Although reinforcements do not improve the structural capacity significantly, they can drastically increase the
joint spacing to 10 to 30m. Dowel bars are required for load transfer. Reinforcements help to keep the slab
together even after cracks.
3. Continuous Reinforced Concrete Pavement:
Continuously reinforced concrete pavements (CRCP) is a type of concrete pavement that does not require any
transverse contraction joints. Transverse cracks are expected in the slab, usually at intervals of 1.5 - 6 ft (0.5 -
1.8 m). CRCP is designed with enough embedded reinforcing steel (approximately 0.6-0.7% by cross-sectional
area) so that cracks are held together tightly. Determining an appropriate spacing between the cracks is part of
the design process for this type of pavement.
4. Pre-stressed concrete pavement (PCP)
Complete elimination of joints is achieved by reinforcement

Failure criteria of rigid pavements

Traditionally fatigue cracking has been considered as the major, or only criterion for rigid pavement design. The
allowable number of load repetitions to cause fatigue cracking depends on the stress ratio between flexural
tensile stress and concrete modulus of rupture. Of late, pumping is identified as an important failure criterion.
Pumping is the ejection of soil slurry through the joints and cracks of cement concrete pavement, caused during
the downward movement of slab under the heavy wheel loads. Other major types of distress in rigid pavements
include faulting, spalling, and deterioration.
Types of Failures in Rigid Pavements
The different types of distresses responsible for failures in rigid pavements are:
1. Joint Spalling
2. Faulting
3. Polished Aggregate
4. Shrinkage Cracking
5. Pumping
6. Punch out
7. Linear Cracking
8. Durability Cracking
9. Corner Break

Joint Spalling in Rigid Pavements

Excessive compressive stress causes deterioration in the joints, called as the spalling. This may be
related to joint infiltration or the growth of pavement, that are caused by the reactive aggregates. Poor quality
concrete or construction technique will also result in joint spalling. Small edges to large spalls in the back of the
slab and down to the joints can be observed. Main causes of joint spalling in rigid pavements are:
Joints subjected to excessive stress due to high traffic or by infiltration of any incompressible materials
The joint that are constructed with weak concrete joint that is accumulated with water that results in rapid
freezing and thawing.
Main causes of joint spalling in rigid pavements are:
a) Joints subjected to excessive stress due to high traffic or by infiltration of any incompressible materials
b) The joint that are constructed with weak concrete
c) Joint that is accumulated with water that results in rapid freezing and thaw

Fig.1: Joint Spalling in Rigid Pavement Slabs

Faulting in Rigid Pavements:

a) The difference in elevation between the joints is called as faulting. The main causes of failures in rigid
pavements due to faulting are:
i. Settlement of the pavement that is caused due to soft foundation
ii. The pumping or the erosion of material under the pavement, resulting in voids under the pavement
slab causing settlement
iii. The temperature changes and moisture changes that cause curling of the slab edges

Fig.2: Faulting with difference in elevations found between the joints

Polished Aggregate in Rigid Pavements

The repeated traffic application leads to this distress. These are the failures in rigid pavements caused
when the aggregates above the cement paste in the case of PCC is very small or the aggregates are not rough or
when they are angular in shape, that it cannot provide sufficient skid resistance for the vehicles. The polishing
degree should be specified before the construction is carried out. This study is included in the condition survey,
where it is mentioned as a defect.
 Fig: Polished Aggregates
Shrinkage Cracking in Rigid Pavements

These are hairline cracks that are less than 2m in length. They do not cross the entire slab. The setting
and curing process of the concrete slab results in such cracks. These are caused due to higher evaporation of
water due to higher temperature cracks. Improper curing can also create shrinkage cracks in rigid
[Link] Cracking in Rigid Pavement.

Fig: Shrinkage Cracking in Pavements

Pumping Effects

The expulsion of water from the under a layer of the pavement is called as pumping. This distress is
caused due to the active vehicle loads coming over the pavement in a repetitive manner. This will result in the
fine materials present in the sub base to move along with water and get expelled out with the water. Larger
voids are created under the pavement due to repeated expulsion. The stains on the pavement or on the shoulder
surface are the method through which this type of failure of rigid pavement is evidenced. Pumping can be
avoided by the prevention of water accumulation at the pavement sub-base interface. This can be achieved by
reducing the deflection to a minimum value and by the provision of a strong well- constructed sub-base. The
constructed sub-base must have a sufficient drainage facility so that the subgrade below is not saturated.
Modern pavement construction makes use of underground drainage system that is the best solution for pumping
distress
 Fig: Pumping Effect
Corner Breaks in Rigid Pavements

These are the failures in rigid pavements that is caused due to pumping in excessive rate. When the
pumping completely remove the underlying support that no more support exists below to taken the vehicle load,
the corner cracks are created. The repair method is either full slab replacement or the repair for the full depth
must be carried out.

Fig: Corner Break Failures in Rigid Pavement

Punch-out in Rigid Pavements

A localized area of concrete slab that is broken into pieces will be named as punch out distress. This
distress can take any shape or form. These are mainly defined by joints and cracks. The joints and cracks will
mainly keep 1.5m width. The main reason behind punch outs is heavy repeated loads, the slab thickness
inadequacy, the foundation support loss or the construction deficiency like honeycombing.

Fig. Punch-out Failures in Rigid Pavements

Linear Cracking in Rigid Pavements
 These types of failures in rigid pavements divides the slab into two or three pieces. The reason behind such
failures is traffic loads at repeated levels, the curling due to thermal gradient and moisture loading repeatedly.

Fig: Linear Cracking

Durability Cracking in Rigid Pavements

The freezing and thawing action will create regular expansion and contraction which will result in the
gradual breakdown of the concrete. This type of distress is patterns of cracks on the concrete surface as layers
that are parallel and closer to the joints. Joints and cracks are the areas where the concrete seem to be more
saturated. Here a dark deposit is found and called the 'D' cracks. This failure of rigid pavement will finally result
in the complete disintegration of the whole slab.

Fig. Durability Cracking or 'D' Cracks Failure in Rigid Pavements

Cement Concrete Road

Methods of Construction of Cement Concrete RoadsThere are two primary methods:

Manual Method (Conventional Method)

 Concrete is mixed on site or in a mixer.

 Placed manually in layers.
 Surface is leveled, compacted using vibrators.
 Curing is done for 14–28 days.

Mechanical Method (Modern Method)

  Uses concrete pavers, slip-form pavers.
 High efficiency and better surface finish.
 Laser-guided screeds used for leveling.
 Faster and uniform compaction.

Alternate Bay Method

 Road is divided into bays (panels).
 Alternate bays (1, 3, 5...) are constructed first.
 After 4–7 days, remaining bays (2, 4, 6...) are constructed.
Advantage:
 Reduces shrinkage cracks.
 Joint gaps maintained to allow for expansion and contraction.
 Continuous Bay Method
 All the bays are constructed continuously, one after another.
 Construction joints are provided at suitable intervals.
 Faster construction, but risk of shrinkage cracks if not managed properly.

Construction Joints
These are planned discontinuities in concrete:

 Allow separation between different pours.

 Help control cracking due to shrinkage and temperature.
Types:

 Butt joint
 Keyed joint
 Tongue and groove joint
 Fillers and Sealers
Fillers:
 Used in expansion joints.
Materials: Bitumen-impregnated fiberboard, cork, rubber.
Provide compressibility and restore shape.
Sealers:

 Applied over joints to prevent water, debris ingress.

 Materials: Bitumen, polysulphide, silicone.
 Flexible and weather-resistant.
Types of Joints in Concrete Roads
Expansion Joint
 Allow expansion due to temperature changes.
 Placed every 30–45 m.
 Filler and sealer used.

Contraction Joint
 Control shrinkage cracking.
 Spaced at 4.5–5 m.
 Grooved or saw-cut.

Construction Joint

 Between two successive concrete placements.

 Provide continuity of slab.
Longitudinal Joint
 Between lanes constructed side-by-side.
 Tie bars or dowels used for load transfer.
Merits of Concrete Roads
 Long life span (30–40 years).
 Low maintenance cost.
 High durability and strength.
 Resistant to oil and water damage.
 Reflects light – improves night visibility.
Demerits of Concrete Roads
 High initial cost.
 Long curing time.
 Requires skilled labor and machinery.
 Noisy compared to bituminous roads.
 Difficult to repair.

Construction of WBM Road (Water Bound Macadam)

Water Bound Macadam (WBM) is a type of road construction where compacted broken stones are
bound together with stone dust and water, forming a durable base or sub-base for roads.

Construction Steps of WBM Road:

 Clearing, leveling, and compacting the natural soil or sub-base layer.
 Construct side shoulders to hold the material in place during compaction.
 Coarse aggregates (63mm to 40mm size) are spread in layers (generally 75-100mm thick).
 Compaction is done using a smooth-wheeled roller (6–10 tons) until interlocking is achieved.
 Finer aggregates or screening material (stone dust or kankar) are spread over the surface to fill voids
between coarse aggregates.
 Water is sprinkled, and rolling is continued to aid binding and further compaction.
 The road is allowed to cure for 24-48 hours before the next layer is placed or the surface is opened to
traffic.

Merits of WBM Roads:

 Cheaper compared to bituminous or concrete roads.
 Does not require skilled labor or sophisticated equipment.
 Uses locally available stones and dust.
 Interlocked stones provide strength and evenly distribute loads
Demerits of WBM Roads:
 Generates dust in dry weather due to lack of binding bitumen.
 Requires frequent repairs, especially after rains.
 Weakens and degrades quickly in wet conditions.
 Short service life compared to bituminous and concrete roads.

WMM Road (Wet Mix Macadam):

Wet Mix Macadam (WMM) is a modern road construction technique where graded aggregates and granular
materials are premixed with water and compacted to form a dense base or sub-base layer.

Merits of WMM Roads:

 Better bonding due to premixing of materials.
 Mechanized mixing and laying speed up the process.
 Due to premixed wet materials.
 Controlled mixing ensures uniformity and compaction.
  Efficient use of water in mixing reduces wastage.

Demerits of WMM Roads:

 Requires machinery like pug mills, graders, and rollers.
 Operates on machines that require trained personnel.
 Not suitable for remote or hilly regions lacking equipment access.

CHAPTER -4
Railway -Introduction , Permanent way & Track materials
INTODUCTION
 Indian Railways is an Indian state-owned enterprise, owned and operated by the Government of India
through the Ministry of Railways. It is one of the world's largest railway networks.

Railways were first introduced to India in the year 1853 from Bombay to Thane , nationalized as one unit, the
Indian Railways, becoming one of the largest networks in the world. IR operates both long distance and
suburban rail systems on a multi-gauge network of broad, metre and narrow gauges. It also owns locomotive
and coach production facilities at several places in India and are assigned codes identifying their gauge, kind of
power and type of operation.

On 23 April 2014, Indian Railways introduced a mobile app system to track train schedules.

Rolling stock used on railways in the earliest days evolved from carriages and wagons which ran on
highways to carry both people and bulk materials.

As railway experience was gained, the design of rolling stock also evolved. Springing, body structure,
wheels and axles all are subject to varying loads and stresses, when comparing slower speeds on rough roads to
much faster speeds on railways, with a comparatively smoother ride.

Railway rolling stock generally runs on hard wheels on hard rails. The wheels are not only supported by
the rails but are guided by them. The only exception to this is for a small number of metros where rubber tyres
have been introduced. In this case the supporting function of the rail may be separated from the guiding
function.

In all cases railway rolling stock will transmit vertical, horizontal and longitudinal forces to the track and its
supports. Most railways have adopted twin rails and flanged wheels. Forces are transmitted to the rail structure
either by direct bearing on the rail top from the wheel tyre, or by bearing laterally through the flange, or by
longitudinal friction. Potential ‘overturning’ forces, caused by centrifugal force on curves, coupled with wind
forces on exposed locations are resisted by vertical dead weight and super-elevation or ‘cant’ on curves.

Advantages of Railways

The railways offer various advantages and for the purpose of convenience, they can be described in
following three categories.

1. Economic Advantages
i) Employment to people in the form of staff required for smooth working of railways.
ii) Encouragement to commercial farming.
iii) Increase in cost of land thereby increase of national wealth.
iv) Industrial development and growth because of mobility of labour and raw materials.

v) Stabilization of prices due to easy, speedy & efficient mobility of products & natural resources.
vi) Increase in mobility of people and thereby relieving some extent the congestion of big cities.
vii) Transporting food and clothes in times of emergencies like floods and famines etc.

2. Political Advantages

i) Easy control of the central administration.

ii) Development of a national mentality in the minds of people.
iii) Migrating population on a mass scale.
iv) Mobilizing troops and war equipment in time of war and emergencies.
v) Unity of people of different castes, customs and religions.

3. Social Advantages

i) Broadening the social outlook of masses as people can visit all the parts of country and be proud of this great
country.
ii) Easy access to religious places of importance.
iii) Providing convenient and safe mode of transport.
iv) Removal of feeling of isolation as the railway has proved to be the most safe, economic and comfortable
mode of conveyance.

Classification of Indian Railways

Indian railway systems according to three classes:-

Class I- Railways with gross annual earnings of over Rs 50 lakhs (Rs 50,00,000).1 Class II - Railways with
gross annual earnings of between Rs 10 and 50 lakhs.
Class III - Railways with gross annual earnings of under Rs 10 lakhs.

Permanent way
 Typical Section of Railway in cutting

Typical Section of Railway in embankment

The finished or completed track of a railway line is commonly known as Permanent Way. It essentially consists
of following three parts.
1. Rails
2. Sleepers
3. Ballast

The rails are fixed with each other by means of various rail fastenings and they rest on sleepers which are laid at
right angles to them. The sleepers in turn rest on ballast which is spread over the formation ground prepared for
the railway track.

Requirements of an ideal permanent way

1. The gauge of track should be uniform and there should not be varying gauges.
2. There should be minimum friction between the wheels of rolling stock and the rails.
3. Facilities should be provided at various points along the permanent way to repair, replace or renew the
damaged portion of the track.
4. The design of the permanent way should be such that the load of the train is uniformly distributed over it.
5. The components of the permanent way should be so selected as to produce a permanent way with a certain
degree of elasticity to prevent the shocks due to impact.
6. The gradient provided on the permanent way should be even and uniform.
7. The special attention should be given on the design of permanent way on curves.
8. The overall construction of the permanent way should be such that it requires minimum maintenance.
9. The permanent way should possess high resistance to damage at the time of derailment.
10. The drainage facility should be perfect.
11. The rail joints should be properly designed and maintained.
12. The precautions should be taken to avoid the occurrence of creep.
13. Various components of the permanent way should possess anti-sabotage and anti-theft qualiti

Rail Gauges

In India, the gauge of a railway track is defined as the clear minimum perpendicular distance between the inner
faces of the two rails.
The different gauges used in India can be broadly classified as following four types.
1. Broad Gauge : Width 1676 mm to 1524 mm.
2. Standard Gauge : Width 1435 mm and 1451 mm.
3. Meter Gauge : Width 1067 mm, 1000 mm and 915 mm.
4. Narrow Gauge : Width 762 mm and 610 mm.

Suitability of these gauges under different conditions

1. Traffic condition - If the intensity of traffic on the track is likely to be more, a gauge wider than the standard
gauge is suitable.

2. Development of poor areas - The narrow gauges are laid in certain parts of the world to develop a poor area
and thus link the poor area with the outside developed world.

3. Cost of track - The cost of railway track is directly proportional to the width of gauge. Hence, if the funds
available is not sufficient to construct a standard gauge, a meter gauge or a narrow gauge is preferred rather than
to have no railways at all.

4. Speed of movement - The speed of a train is a function of the diameter of wheels which in turn is limited by
the gauge. The wheel diameter is usually about 0.75 times the gauge width and thus, the speed of a trainis
almost proportional to the gauge. If higher speeds are to be attained, the B.G. track is preferred to the M.G. or
N.G. track.
5. Nature of Country - In mountainous country, it is advisable to have a narrow gauge of track since it is more
flexible and can be laid to a smaller radius on the curves. This is the reason why some important railways,
covering thousands of kilometers, are laid with a gauge as narrow as 610 mm.
RAILS

Function of Rails
 To transmit the moving loads to the sleepers
 To provide strong, hard and smooth surface for the train journey.
 To bear the stresses developed in the track due to temperature changes and loading patterns. To serve as
lateral guide to the running wheels.
 To resist breaking forces caused due to stoppage of trains.

Requirements of an Ideal Rail

1. The rail section consists of three components: head, web and foot. It should be designed for optimum
nominal weight to provide for the most efficient distribution of metal in its various components.
2. The bottom of head and top of the foot should be given such shapes that fish-plates can easily be
fitted.
3. The C.G. of the rail section should be located very near to the centre of height of rail so that
maximum tensile and compressive stresses are more or less the same.
4. The depth of head of rail should be sufficient to allow for adequate margin of vertical wear.
5. The rail should possess adequate lateral and vertical stiff nesses.
6. There should be balanced distribution of metal in the head,web and foot of rail so that each of them is
able to fulfill its assigned function.
7. The surface of rail table and gauge face of rail should be hard and should be capable of resisting wear.
8. The thickness of web of rail should be sufficient to take safely the load coming on the rail.

TYPES OF RAIL SECTIONS

Double headed rails:

These were the rails which were used in the beginning, which were double headed and consisting of a dumb-
bell section. The idea behind using these rails was that when the head was worn out in course of time, the rail
can be inverted and reused. But as time passed indentations were formed in the lower table due to which smooth
running over the surface at the top was impossible.

Bull headed rails:

In this type of rail the head was made a little thicker and stronger than the lower part by adding more metal to it,
so that it can withstand the stresses.

Flat footed rails:

These rails are also called as vignole's rails. Initially the flat footed rails were fixed to the sleepers directly and
no chairs and keys were required. Later on due to heavy train loads problems arose which lead to steel bearing
plates between the sleeper and the rail. at rail joints and other important places these are the rails which are most
commonly used in India.
Length of the Rails:

From the consideration of strength of the track maximum possible length is advisable as it will reduce the
number of the joints, less number of fittings and fixtures and economical maintenance. But in practice the
following factors are considered to decide the length of rails.

i) Ease of transportation
ii) Reasonable cost of manufacture
iii) Ease in loading into the available wagons
iv) Development of temperature stresses

NOTE :-
Indian Railways have adopted the following length of rails in practice.
i) For BG tracks = 13 m (42’)
ii) For MG & NG tracks = 12 m (39’)

Rail Joints
Rail joints are necessary to hold the adjoining ends of the rails in the correct position, both in the horizontal and
vertical planes.

Types of Rail joints

Supported rail joints:

When the rail ends rest on a single sleeper it is termed as supported joint. The duplex joint sleeper with other
sleepers is an example of the supported joint.

Suspended rail joint:

When rail ends are projected beyond sleepers it is termed as suspended joint. This type of joint is generally used
with timber and steel through sleepers.

Bridge joints:
When the rail ends are projected beyond sleepers as in the case of suspended joint and they are connected by a
flator corrugated plate called as bridge plate it is termed as a bridge joint.

Insulated joint:
When an insulating medium is inserted in a rail joint ot stop the flow of current beyond the track circuited part
then that type of joint is called an insulated joint.

Compromise joint:
Where two different rail sections are required to be joined together it is done by means of fish plated which fit
both rails and this joint is termed as compromise joint.
Requirements of an Ideal Rail Joint
i) Ends to remain true
ii) Should be strong and stiff
iii) Provision for expansion
iv) Perfectly elastic
v) Ends should not get battered
vi) Provision for easy removal and replacement
vii) Economical in cost

Purpose of Welding of Rails

Welded rail joint Purpose of welding:

 To increase the length of the rails
 To repair the worn out or damaged rails
 To build up worn out points and rails on the sharp curves

Advantages of welding rails:

 Reduces the creep and friction due to increase in length of rail.
 Expansion effect due to reduction in temperature.
 Increase the life of the rails due to decrease in wear.
 It facilitates track circuiting on electrified tracks.
 The cost decrease because as the length increase automatically the number of joints decreases.
 High frequency vibrations due to heavy moving loads are decreased due to the heaviness of the rails

CREEP

Creep in rails denotes longitudinal movement of rails in the track

The following figure shows a type of Fair V-anchor which is used in the track to prevent creep of rails
 It is defined as the longitudinal movement of rails with respect to sleepers in a track
Causes of creep:
1. Closing of successive expansion spaces at rail joints in the direction of creep and opening out of joints at the
point from where the creep starts.
2. Marks on flanges and webs of rails made by spike heads by scraping or scratching as the rails slide.

Effects of Creep:
1. Sleepers move out of position which leads to the change in gauge and alignment of the track.
2. Rail joints are opened out of their limit in some case and stresses are set up in fish plates and bols which leads
to the breakage of the bolts.
3. Pints and crossings get disturbed
.
4. Maintenace and replacement of tracks becomes difficult.
5. Smashing of fish plates and bolts, bending of bars, kinks at joints are other effects of creep.

Sleepers &Ballast
Sleepers (known in the US as railroad ties) are used as a base for laying railway tracks. Sleepers were
traditionally made from wood but are now usually made from concrete. Ties are laid on top of sand, gravel or
heavy crushed stone - called ballast.

Functions of sleepers
The functions of sleepers are as follows-

To hold the rails in correct gauge i.e. exact gauge in the case of straight and flat curves, loose gauge in the case
of sharp curves and tight gauge in the case of diamond crossings.
2. To act as an elastic medium between the ballast and rail to absorb the blows and vibrations of moving loads.
3. They also add to the longitudinal and lateral stability of the permanent track on the whole.
4. They also provide means to rectify track geometry during service life.
5. To support the rails at proper level in straight tracks and at proper super elevation on curves.
6. To distribute the load from the rails to the index area of ballast underlying it or to the girders in the case of
bridges.
7. To hold the rails in proper level.

Requirements of Good Sleepers

1. It should be economical
2. It should be minimum possible initial and maintenance costs.
3. The fittings should be such that they can be easily adjusted.
4. Weight should not be too heavy or too light.
5. It should not be easily damaged by anti-Nationals.
6. They should be capable of resisting shocks and vibrations.
7. The insulation of rails should be possible for track circuiting, if required through sleepers.
8. It should be designed that it could not be disturbed from its position easily by the passage of trains.

Classification of Sleepers
Sleepers can be classified into the following types according to the material of construction.
1. Wooden sleepers
2. Metal sleepers

 Cast iron sleepers

3. Steel sleepers
4. Concrete sleepers
 Reinforce concrete sleepers
 Prestressed concrete sleepers
[Link] or Wooden Sleepers
Wooden sleepers are regarded as the best as they satisfy almost all the requirements of a good sleeper. The life
of timber sleepers depend upon their ability to resist
 Wear and tear
 Decay
 Attack by white ants
 Quality of the timber used

Advantages:
 It is easily available in all parts of India
 Fittings are few and simple in design
  They are easy to lay, relay, pack, lift and maintain
 They are suitable for all types of ballast
 They are able to resist the shocks and vibrations of the heavy moving loads
 They are economical

Disadvantages:
 They are subjected to decay, attack by white ants, warping, cracking and end splitting It is difficult to
maintain the gauge in the case of wooden sleepers.
 It is difficult to maintain the alignment in the case of wooden sleepers.
 They have got minimum service life (12 to 15 yrs.) as compared to other types of sleepers

[Link] Iron sleepers

Cast iron sleepers are widely used in the world especially in Indian railways. They are available in 2 types, pot
type sleepers and plate type sleepers. Pot type sleepers are not suitable for curves sharper than 4 degrees. Cast
iron plate type sleepers are more famous in Indian railways.

Advantages:
1. Service life is very long
2. Less liable to corrosion
3. Form good track for light traffic up to 110 kmph as they form rigid track subjected to vibrations under
moving loads without any damping
4. Scrap value is high
Disadvantages:
1. Gauge maintenance is difficult as tie bars get bent up
2. Not suitable for circuited track
3. Need large number of fittings
4. Suitable only for stone ballast
5. Heavy traffic and high speeds (>110kmph) will cause loosening of keys and development of high creep
[Link] Sleepers
Concrete sleepers are made of a strong homogeneous material, impervious to effects of moisture and unaffected
by the chemical attacks. It is moulded easily to size and shape required and it is an ideal material to with stand
stresses introduced by fast and heavy traffic.

Advantages:
1. The concrete sleepers are quite heavy and thus provide longitudinal, lateral and vertical stability. Because of
their weight, these sleepers are more suitable to LWR(Long Welded Rail) tracks.
2. The concrete sleepers result in reduced rail bending stresses.
3. The concrete sleepers reduce the wear of rolling stocks.
4. The concrete sleepers produce less vertical motion and thus provide a comfortable journey due to less noise.
5. The concrete sleepers have flat bottoms. That’s why mean modern method of track maintenance i.e. MSP
(Measured Shovel Packing) and machine maintenance can be suitably employed.
[Link] concrete sleepers are neither inflammable nor subjected to damage by corrosion or termite.
7. These sleepers have a long useful life of 50 years. It means rail and sleeper renewals can be matched.
8. The concrete sleepers with their fastening system maintain gauge, cross levels, twist, alignment, longitudinal
level and unevenness of the track.
9. The concrete sleepers are suitable for track circuiting.
10. The concrete sleepers can be manufactured from local resources.
Disadvantages :
1. They are not economical because of high cost of construction.
2. In case of derailments, heavy damage is caused.
3. High standard of maintenance of track is required.
4. The design and construction are both complicated.
5. They are more rigid.
6. They do not have any scrap value.

4. Steel sleepers

Steel sleepers are lightweight, dimensionally more accurate than wooden or concrete and regarded as an
effective technical solution for modern rail networks.

Advantages of steel Sleepers

1. They are manufactured by a simple operation.
2. They can be easily handled as these are light in weight as compared to other types of sleepers. Hence,
damages during handling and transporting are less.
3. Less number of fastenings are required and that too simple in nature.
4. The maintenance and adjustment of gauge are easy as compared to the other of sleepers.
5. These sleepers are rolled sections in one piece.
6. Their life is longer than that of other types of sleepers.
7. They provide better lateral rigidity to the track.
8. They are not attacked by vermin.
9. They are not susceptible to fire hazards.
10. Their scrap value is good.

Disadvantages of Steel of Sleepers

[Link] steel sleepers possess the following disadvantages:

2. They get easily rusted and corroded.
3. They develop cracks at rail seats or near lugs.
4. Their lugs get broken easily.
5. The steel sleepers do not provide effective track circuiting.
6. The steel sleepers can only be for the type of rails for which theses are manufactured.
7. These develop the tendency to become center bound because of slope at both ends.
8. The overall cost of steel sleepers is more than that of timber sleepers.
Ballast

It is a layer of broken stones, gravel or any other such gritty material laid and packed below and around
sleepers.

Functions of ballast:

a. To distribute the loads uniformly over the subgrade.

b. To provide good drainage for the track structure.
c. To provide elasticity and resilience to track for getting proper riding comfort.
d. To held the track structure to line and grade.
e. To reduce dust.
f. To prevent growth of brush and weeds

Requirements of Good Ballast

1. It should be tough and should not crumble under heavy loads.

2. It should not make the track dusty or muddy.
3. It should offer resistance to abrasion and weathering.
4. It should not produce any chemical reaction with rails and sleepers.
5. The materials should be easily workable.
6. It should retain its position and should not be distributed.

Materials used as Ballast

1. Broken Stone - Broken stone is one of the best materials for railway ballast to be used on the railway
tracks. Almost all the important railway tracks are provided with broken stone. The stone to be used as
railway ballast should be hard, tough nonporous and should not decompose when exposed to air and
light. Igneous rocks like quartzite and granite forms the excellent ballast materials. When these are not
available then lime stone and sand stone can also be used as good ballast material
Advantages of Broken Stone

1. It holds the track in position

2. It is good for heavy traffic
3. It can serve high speeds equally well.
Disadvantages of Broken Stone

1. The main disadvantage is that it is expensive in its initial cost.

2. Gravel - Gravel ranks next in its suitability for use as materials for ballast and is used in many countries
of the world in very large quantities. Gravel consists of worn fragments of rocks occurring in natural
deposits. Gravel or shingle may be obtained from river bed or it may be dug out from gravel pits.

Advantages of Grave
1. It is cheaper in its cost as it has not to be broken as like stone ballast
[Link] has got excellent drainage properties, if properly cleaned

Disadvantages of Gravel

1. It easily rolls down under the vibrations and packing under the sleepers get tense
2. The variation in size is considerable and hence requires screening before use
3. Grovel as obtained from gravel pits, is full of earth and hence requires proper cleaning if proper
drainage of the track is to be done.
3. Cinders Or Ashes
-The residue from the coal in locomotives or other furnaces is called cinder or ashes. It is one of the universal
forms of ballast as it is a byproduct of all the railway which uses coal as a fuel.

Advantages of Cinders or Ashes

1. Handling of the material is not cumbersome this material can be handle easily
2. Cost is very low and hence can also be used for sidings
3. It has got fairly good drainage properties
4. Large quantities of this material can be made available at short notice.
5. In case of emergence such as caused by the destruction of portion of railway track during floods. This
material proves to be very useful and is used in the formation repairing as well as for packing of track.

Disadvantages of Cinders or Ashes

1. It is highly corrosive and cannot be used where steel sleepers are fixed
2. The foot of the rails get affected due to use of this type of material as ballast
3. It is very soft and can easily be reduced to powder under vibrations and hence the track becomes very dusty.
This is objectionable particularly in dry weather

[Link] - Sand is another good materials for railway ballast , coarser sand is to be preferred to finer sand and
the best sand is that which contains a quantity of fine gravel varying in size from 1/8 upwards.
Advantages of Sand
1. If the sand is free from earth and vegetation then it has good excellent properties to drain off water
immediately
2. It is cheaper if available in nearby locality
3. It produces very silent track and hence are suitable for packing cast iron pot sleepers.

Disadvantages of Sand
1. It gets easily disturbed under vibrations and hence its maintenance is very difficult
2. The sand can be easily washed off or blown away and hence requires frequent renewal.
3. The sand particles may get into the moving parts of the vehicles and produces friction. This leads to heavy
wear of vehicles.

1. Kankar - Kankar a lime agglomerate is found in many places in the form of nodules of varying sizes.

Advantages of Kankar

1. Kankar is suitable Materials for ballast when other good material for ballast is not available or if available
uneconomically.
2. Kankar is good for light traffic on metre and narrow gauges

Disadvantages of Kankar

1. It is very soft and can be reduced to powder form easily, hence, making the track dusty.
2. The maintenance of track is very difficult

[Link] - The decomposition of laterite results into the formation of moorum. It has red and sometimes
yellow color. The best moorum is that which contains large quantities of small laterite stones.

Advantages of Moorum
1. Moorum is good materials for ballast when other material for ballast is not available.
2. Moorum can be safely used on newly laid track and acts as a soling when broken stones are laid
afterwards.
3. Moorum has got good drainage properties

Disadvantages of Moorum
1. Moorum is very soft and reduces to powder and hence to dust form in short time.
2. Maintenance of tracks laid with this material is difficult

7. Brick Ballast Or Brick Bats –

Sometimes the broken pieces of over burnt bricks, called brickbats, are used as materials for ballast.

Advantages of Brick Ballast

1. It has got excellent drainage properties

2. They can be used as good ballast material where suitable material for ballast is either unavailable or
uneconomical
Disadvantages of Brick Ballast

1. Brickbats turn down into powder form easily and hence the track becomes dusty
2. Maintenance of the track laid with this material as ballast is very difficult.
3. Rails are often corrugated on the tracks laid with this material as ballast

[Link] Earth –
Selected earth may be used as material for railway ballast for sidings and also for newly laid tracks.

Track fixtures for BG

Rail joints – Fish plates – Fish bolts- Fang bolts- Hook bolts – Rail chairs and keys – Bearing plates – Blocks –
Spikes-Elastic fastenings- Anchors & Anti creepers

Fastening
A rail fastening system is a means of fixing rails to railroad ties. The terms rail anchors, tie plates, chairs and
track fasteners are used to refer to parts or all of a rail fastening system. Various types of fastening have been
used over the years.

Fish Plates

In rail terminology, a fishplate, splice bar or joint bar is a metal bar that is bolted to the ends of two rails to join
them together in a track. The name is derived from fish, a wooden bar with a curved profile used to strengthen a
ship's mast. The top and bottom edges are tapered inwards so the device wedges itself between the top and
bottom of the rail when it is bolted into place. In rail transport modelling, a fishplate is often a small copper or
nickel silver plate that slips onto both rails to provide the functions of maintaining alignment and electrical
continuity.

The first railway fishplate

RAIL-TO-RAIL Fastenings

Combination Fish Plates

Fang Bolts

Screw Spikes
Bearing Plates
Fittings of Steel Trough Sleepers

STEEL SLEEPERS FITTINGS

CAST IRON SLEEPER FITTINGS
New Elastic Fastening ( G Clip)

CHAPTER-05

Geometric for Broad gauge, Points and crossings , Laying & maintenance of track

Geometric for Broad gauge

 Typical Section of Railway in Cutting

Typical Section of an embankment

Classification of Railway Land:

With a view to determine what the disposition of the land will probably be on the completion of the work for which it had
been acquired, the classification given in paragraph 818 etc. should be adopted.

On railways, land is divided into two classes-

 (i) Permanent land width
(ii) Temporary land width

(i) Permanent land width is land which will be required permanently after the railway is open for traffic
and the work of construction is complete. Under this head will be included all land to be occupied by the
formation of the permanent line of railway with side slopes of banks and cuttings, and the berms
connected therewith; catch water drains and borrow pits or such parts of them as it is necessary to retain;
the entrances to tunnels and shafts belonging to them; the sites of bridges, and protection or training
works; station yards; landing places for railway ferries; ground to be occupied by works belonging to
the railway such as gas works, arrangements for water supply, septic tanks, collecting pits, filter beds
and pumping installations, & c., ground for the storage manufacture or acquisition of materials; land for
sanitary zones, cemeteries, churches, plantations; gardens, and recreation grounds, sites for stations,
offices, workshops; dwelling houses and other buildings required for the purposes of the railway, or the
accommodation of the staff, with the grounds, yards, roads, & c., appertaining thereto. Under this head
will also be included land outside the permanent railway boundary, which will be required for the
permanent diversion of roads or rivers, or for other works incidental to the construction of the railway,
which are made for public purposes and will not on completion of the works be maintained by the
railway authorities.
(ii) Temporary land width is land which is acquired for temporary purposes only, and which is disposed of after the
work of construction is completed.

Gradients for drainage

Drainage is defined as interception, collection and disposal of water away from track. Drainage is the most
important factor in track maintenance and for stability of banks/cuttings. When water seeps into the formation,
it weakens the bonds between the soil particles, softens the soil and results in creation of ballast pockets. On one
hand, ingress of water into bank/cutting adds to weight of soil mass trying to slide, thereby increasing
propensity for slope-slide, on the other hand, it reduces shear strength of soil, thereby decreasing factor of safety
for stability of slope. Therefore, quick disposal of water from formation top/slopes is very essential. Drainage
system should be effective in preventing the stagnation of water and allow quick disposal of water. At present,
drainage is not being given its due importance in field. Provisions relating to drainage have been detailed in
various guidelines issued by RDSO (Research Design and Standards Organisation) from time to time, however,
the present Guidelines highlight the salient features of drainage arrangement in embankment as well as cuttings.

CONVENTIONAL DRAINAGE SYSTEMS

 SURFACE DRAINAGE
 SIDE DRAINS
  CATCH WATER DRAINS
 SUB SURFACE DRAINS
SUPER ELEVATION

(1) Cant or super elevation is the amount by which one rail is raised above the other rail. It is positive when
the outer rail on a curved track is raised above inner rail and is negative when the inner rail on a curved track is
raised above the outer rail.
(2) Equilibrium speed is the speed at which the centrifugal force developed during the movement of the
vehicle on a curved track is exactly balanced by the cant provided.
(3) Cant deficiency- Cant deficiency occurs when a train travels around a curve at a speed higher than the
equilibrium speed. It is the difference between the theoretical cant required for such higher speed and actual
cant provided.
(4) Cant excess - Cant excess occurs when a train travels around a curve at a speed lower than the equilibrium
speed. It is the difference between the actual cant and the theoretical cant required for such a lower speed.
(5) Maximum permissible speed of the curve-It is the highest speed which may be permitted on a curve taking
into consideration the radius of the curvature, actual cant, cant deficiency, cant excess and the length of
transition. When the maximum permissible speed on a curve is less than the maximum sectional speed of the
section of a line, permanent speed restriction becomes necessary.
(6) Cant gradient and cant deficiency gradient indicate the amount by which cant or deficiency of cant is
increased or reduced in a given length of transition e.g., 1 in 1000 means that cant or deficiency of cant of 1
mm. is gained or lost in every 1000mm. of transition length.

(7) Rate of change of cant or rate of change of cant deficiency is the rate at which cant or cant deficiency is
increased or reduced per second, at the maximum permissible speed of the vehicle passing over the transition
curve, e.g., 35 mm. per second means that a vehicle when traveling at a maximum speed permitted will
experience a change in cant or deficiency of cant of 35mm. in each second of travel over the transition.
(8) Transition curve is an easement curve, in which the change of radius is progressive throughout its length
and is usually provided in a shape of a cubic parabola at each end of the circular curve. It affords a gradual
increase of curvature from zero at the tangent point to the specified radius of circular are and permits a gradual
increase of super elevation, so that the full superelevation is attained simultaneously with the curvature of the
circular arc.

Super elevation, Cant deficiency and Cant excess

(1) Super elevation/cant

(a) The equilibrium super elevation/cant necessary for any speed is calculated from the formula

Where C is cant/super elevation in mm. G is the gauge of track + width of rail head in mm. R is the radius of the
curve in metres.

Necessity of Super Elevation

In order to counteract the effect of centrifugal force the outside rail of the curve may be elevated above the
inside rail effectively moving the centre of gravity of the rolling stock laterally toward the inside rail. This
procedure is generally referred to as super elevation.

If the combination of lateral displacement of the centre of gravity provided by the super elevation,
velocity of the rolling stock and radius of curve is such that resulting force becomes centered between and
perpendicular to a line across the running rails the downward pressure on the outside and inside rails of the
curve will be the same.

The super elevation that produces this condition for a given velocity and radius of curve is known as the
balanced or equilibrium elevation.
Limitation of Super elevation

For Mixed Passenger & Freight Routes

Typical early railway operation resulted in rolling stock being operated at less than equilibrium velocity (all
wheels equally sharing the rolling stock weight), or coming to a complete stop on curves. Under such
circumstances excess super elevation may lead to a downward force sufficient to damage the inside rail of the
curve, or cause derailment of rolling stock toward the centre of the curve when draft force is applied to a train.
Routine operation of loaded freight trains at low velocity on a curve super elevated to permit operation of higher
velocity passenger trains will result in excess wear of the inside rail of the curve by the freight trains.

NOTE- Thus on these types of routes, super elevation is generally limited to not more than 6 inches.

For High Speed Passenger Routes

Modern high speed passenger routes, do not carry slower speed trains, nor expect trains to stop on curves, so it
is possible to operate these routes with higher track super elevation values. Curves on these types of route are
also designed to be relatively gentle radius, and are typically in excess of 2000m (2km) or 7000m (7km)
depending on the speed limit of the route.

POINTS AND CROSSING

The arrangement which is used to transfer the train from one track to another is known as points and crossings.

Necessity:-
I. Points and crossing are provided to help transfer railway vehicle from one track to another.
II. The track may be parallel to diverging from or converging with each other point and crossing are necessary
because the wheels of railway vehicles are provided with inside flange and therefore they require this in special
arrangement in order to navigate their way on the rail.
III. The points or switches aid in diverting the vehicles and the crossing provide gaps in the rails so as to help
the flanged wheels to roll over them.
IV. A complete set of points and crossings, along with lead rails, is called a turnout.

Points or Switches

A pair of tongue rail and stock rail with necessary connection and fitting forms a switch
Crossing: - it is a device introduced at the junction where two rails cross each other to permit the wheel flanges
of a railway vehicle to pass from one track to another.

Switches

 A pair of stock rail, AB and CD made of medium-manganese steel.

 A pair of tongue rails, PQ and RS also known as switch rails made withstand wear. The tongue rails are
machined to very thin section to obtain a snug fit with the stock rail is called ‘toe’ and thicker end is
called the ‘heel’
 A no. of slide chairs to support the tongue rail and enable its movement towards or away from the stock
rail.
 Two or more stretcher bars connecting both the tongue rails close to the toe for the purpose of holding
them at a fixed distance from each other.
  A gauge ties plate to fix gauges and ensure correct gauge at the points.

FIGURE: DETAILS OF SWITCH

Types of Switches

Switches are of two types, namely ‘stud switches’ and ‘split switch’.
In ‘stud switch’ no separate tongue rail is provided and some portion of the track is moved from one side to the
other side.

In ‘split switch’ a pair of stock rail and a pair of tongue rails are present. Split switches are two types:-

1) Loose Heel type:-

 In this type of split switch, the switch or tongue rail finishes at the heel of the switch to enable
movement of the free end of the tongue rail.
 The fish plates holding the tongue rail may be straight or hightly bent.
 The tongue rail is fastened to the stock rail with the help of a fishing fit block and four bolts.
 All the fish bolts in the lead rail are tightened while those in the tongue rail are kept loose or snug to
allow free movement of the tongue.
 As the discontinuity of the track at the heel is a weakness in the structure, the use of these switches is
structures, the use of these switches is not preferred
(2) Fixed Heel Type:-
In this type of split switch the tongue rail does not end at the heel of the switch, but extends further and is
rigidly connected. The movement at the toe of the switch is made possible on account of flexibility of tongue rail.

Crossing:-
A crossing or Frog is a device introduced at the point/junction where two gauge faces / rails cross each other to
permit the wheel flanges of a railway vehicle to pass from one track to each other.
A crossing consists of the following components.

(i) Two rails, point rails and splice rails, which are machined to form a nose. The point rail ends at the
nose whereas the splice rail joins it a little behind the nose.
Theoretically, the point rail should end in a point and be made as thin as possible, but a knife edge of
point rail would break off under the movement of traffic. The point rail therefore, has its fine end
slightly cut off to form a blunt nose, with a thickness of 6mm. The toe of the blunt nose is called the
actual nose of crossing (ANC) and the theoretical point where the gauge faces form both sides
intersect is called the theoretical nose of crossing (TNC).The ‘V’ rail is planed to a depth of 6mm
(1/4’’) at the nose and runs out in 89mm to stop a wheel running in the facing direction from hitting
the nose.

Figure: - Point Rail and Splice Rail

(ii) Two wing rails consisting of a right hand and a left hand wing rail that converge to from a throat and
diverge again on either side of the nose. Wing rails are flared at the ends to facilitate the entry and exit of the
flanged wheel in the gap.

(iii) A pair of check rails to guide the wheel flanges preventing them from moving sideways which would
otherwise may result in the wheel hitting the nose of the crossing as it moves in the facing direction.

TYPES OF CROSSING:

A crossing may be of the following types:-

(a) An acute angle crossing or ‘V’ crossing in which the intersection of two gauge faces forms on acute
angle, For example when a right rail crosses a left rail, it makes an acute crossing. So unlike rail crossing
from an acute crossing.
 (b) An obtuse or diamond crossing in which the two gauge faces meet at an obtuse angle. When a right on
left rail crosses a similar rail, it makes an obtuse crossing.
(c) Square crossing in which two tracks crossing at right angles, such crossings are rarely used in actual
practice. For manufacturing purposes, crossing is of following types.

According to manufacture, the crossing may be classified as mentioned under:-

(a) Built up crossing:-

In a built-up crossing two wing rails and a V-section consisting of splice and point rails are assembled together
by means of bolts and distance blocks to form a crossing.

Advantages:-
(a) Initial cost is low.
(b) Repair can be carried out by welding.

(b) Cast steel crossing:-

This is one piece crossing with no bolts and therefore requiring very little maintenance.

Advantages:-
(a) Longer life.

Disadvantages:-
(a) Initial cost is high.
(b) Repair and maintenance causes a no of problem

(c) Combined rail and cast crossing:-.

It is a combination of a built-up and cast steel crossing and consists of a cast steel nose finished to ordinary rail
faces to form the two legs of the crossing.

Through it allows the welding of worn-out wing rails, the nose is still liable to fracture suddenly.

CMS Crossing:- Due to increase in traffic and the use of heavier axle loads, the ordinary built-up crossing
manufacturer from medium –manganese rails subjected to vary heavy wear and tear, especially in fast lines and
suburban sections with electric traction. Past experience has shown that life of such crossings varies six months
to two years, depending on their location and service conditions. CMS crossings possess higher strength, offer
more resistance to wear and consequently have a longer life.
Advantages:-
 Less wear and tear.
 Longer life.
 Free from bolts as wheel as other components that normally to get loose as a result of movement of
traffic.

Spring or Movable Crossing:-

In a spring crossing, one wing rail is movable and held against the V of the crossing with a strong helical spring
while the other wing rail is kept fixed. When a vehicle passes on the main track, the movable wing rail is snug
with crossing and the vehicle does not need to negotiate any gap at the crossing. In case the vehicle has to pass
over a turnout track, the movable wing is forced out by the wheel flanges and the vehicle has to negotiate a gap
as in normal turnout .
 This type of crossing is useful when there is high-speed traffic on the main track and slow-speed traffic
on the turnout track

METHODS OF LAYING & MAINTENANCE OF TRACK

Essential of Track Maintenance:-

1. The gauge should be correct or within the specified limits.

2. There should be no difference in cross levels except on curves, where cross levels vary in order to provide
super elevation.
3. Longitudinal levels should be uniform.
4. The alignment should be straight and kink-free.
5. The ballast should be adequate and sleepers should be well packed.
6. The tack drainage should be good and formation should be well trained.

Railway track can be maintained either conventionally by manual labor or by the application of modern
methods of track maintenance, such as mechanical tamping or measured shovel packing. The major
maintenance operations performed in a calendar year (12-months) are as follows for achieving the above
mentioned standards:-

1) Through Packing
2) Systematic Overhauling
3) Picking up slacks

1) Through Packing

Through Packing is carried out in a systematic and sequential manner as described as follows:

 Opening of road:-The ballast is dug out on either side of the rail seat for a depth of 50mm (2”)
below the bottom of the sleeper with the help of a shovel with a wire claw .On the outside, the
width of the opening should extend up to the end of the sleeper.

 On the inside it should extend from the rail seat to a distance of 450mm (18”) in case of BG,
350mm (14”) in case of MG, and 250mm (10”) in case of NG.

 Examination of rails, sleepers and fastening:- The rails, sleepers and fastening to be used are
thoroughly examined. Defective sleepers are removed and loose fastening are tightened. Any
kinks in rails are removed.

 Squaring of sleepers:- (a) To do this one of the rails is taken as the sighting rail and the correct
sleeper spacing is marked on it.

(b) The position of the sleeper is checked with reference to the second rail with the help of a T-
square.
 (c) The sleeper attended to after this defects have been established, which may include their
being out of square or at incorrect spacing.

 Aligning the track:-

(a) The alignment of the track is normally checked visually, where in the rail is visually assessed form a
distance of about four rail lengths or so.

(b) Small errors in the alignment are corrected by slewing the track after loosening the cores at the ends
and drawing out sufficient ballast at the ends of the sleeper.

(c) Slewing is carried out by planting crowbar deep into the ballast at an angle not more than 30 form the
vertical.

Advantages of Track Maintenance:-

1. If the track is suitably maintained, the life of the track as well as that of the rolling stock increases since there
is lesser wear and tear of their components.
2. Regular track maintenance helps in reducing operating costs and fuel consumption.
3. Small maintenance jobs done at the appropriate time, such as tightening a bolt or key, hammering the dog
spike, etc., help in avoiding loss of concerned fitting and thus saving on the associated expenditure.
4. When track maintenance is neglected for along time, it may render the track beyond repair, calling for heavy
track renewals that entail huge expenses

Gauging:-
The gauge should be checked and an attempt should be made to provide a uniform gauge within permissible
tolerance limits.

2. Systematic overhauling:-
The systematic overhauling of the track should normally commence after the completion of one cycle of
through packing. It involves the following operations in sequence:-
(a) Shallow screening and making up of ballast section.
(b) Replacing damaged or brother fittings.
(c) Including all items in through packing.
(d) Making up the cess.

3. Picking up stacks:-
Stacks are those points in the track where the running of trains is faculty. Slacks generally occur in the
following cases:-
(a) Stretches of yielding formation.
(b) Improperly aligned curves.
(c) Portions of track with poor drainage.
(d) Approaches to level crossing, girder bridges etc.
(e) Section with an inadequate or unclean ballast cushion.

No through packing is done during the raining season and slacks are only picked up in order to keep the track
safe and in good running condition.
Duties of a permanent way Inspector (PWI)

The PWI is generally responsible for the following:-

(a) Maintenance and inspection of the track to ensure satisfactory and safe performance.
(b) Efficient execution of all works incidental to track maintenance, including track relaying work.
(c) Accounts and periodical verification of the stores and tools in his or her charge.
(d) Maintenance of land boundaries between stations and at important stations as may be specified by the
administration.

The PWI also carries out inspection of the following facts of a track.
(a) Testing the track.
(b) Inspection of track and gauge.
(c) Level crossing inspection.
(d) Point and crossing inspection.
(e) Curve inspection.
(f) Safety of track.

In addition to the inspections, a PWI also carries out following duties:-

(a) Check the proximity of trees that are likely to damage the track and get them removed.
(b) Check night patrolling at last once a month by train as well as by trolley.
(c) Takes the necessary safety measures wile executing maintenance work that affects the safety of the track.
(d) Periodically inspects and respective LWR tacks to ensure their safety.
(e) Ensures the cleanliness of station yards.
(f) Keeps proper records of the training out of ballast.
(g) Looks after all establishment work, including the welfare of the staff working under his charge and
maintenance their service records.
(h) Ensures the safety of the track during the execution of work that affects the track.