Transportation

Engineering

Efforts by :- Gurpinder Singh

Roll No.- 615/17
Submitted to :- Dr. Sanjeev Naval
 Topics
• History of Road Development • 4 E’s
• Road Plans in India • Overtaking sight distance
• Golden Quadrilateral • Super Elevation
• Motor Vehicle Act • Gradient
• Classification of roads
• Highway Planning
• Urban Road Patterns
 GATE CE 2015
A superspeedway in New Delhi has among the highest
super-elevation rates of any track on the Indian Grand
Prix circuit. The track requires drivers to negotiate turns
with a radius of 335 m and 33° banking. Given this
information, the coefficient of side friction required in
order to allow a vehicle to travel at 320 km/h along the
curve is:
a) 1.761
b) 0.176
c) 0.253
d) 2.530
 Ancient Roads (2500-3500 BC)

• By foot-These human pathways were developed for 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
• 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.
• To provide adequate strength to carry the wheels, the
new ways tended to follow the sunny drier side of a
path. These have led to the development of footpaths.
After the invention of wheel, animal drawn vehicles
were developed
 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.
• Appian way which was build by
Romans in 312 B.C. extended over a
length of about 580 KM.
 Features of Roman roads
• An earthed road with a
gravelled surface.
• They were build straight
without any gradient.
• The soft soil from top was
removed till the hard
stratum was reached.
• The total thickness of road
section worked out as high
as 750 mm to 1200 mm.
 Mauryan Times (321-185 BC)

• The Mauryan Emperors (321 to 185 B.C.) built very good roads.
Chandragupta Maurya constructed around 2400 km. long road
across the sub-continent connecting Pataliputra (Modern Patna)
to Takshashila.

• It touched cities like Varanasi,

Kausambhi, Mathura,
Indraprastha (Modern Delhi)
and Kurukshetra. This road is
more or less of the same
alignment of the present NH-2
– the G. T. Road.
 Mughal Roads (15th Century)
• According to their narration it is known that the
important roads were provided with tree plantation
on both sides, rest houses, postal stations and deep
wells for water supply.
• History of roads in India would be incomplete if the
great deed of Sher Shah Suri, the Pashtun monarch,
who in a short tenure during 16th century, built
Grant Trunk Road. The road was originally built
from Agra (the capital city of Sher Shah Suri) to
Sasaram (his home town).
 British Roads (18th Century)
• 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 road.
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.
 Modern Roads
• The modern roads follow Macadam's
construction method.
• Use of bituminous concrete and cement.
• Various advanced and cost- effective
construction technologies are used.
• Development of new equipment's 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.
Back
 Nagpur Road Plan
• Time period -1943 to 1963
• The first twenty years road network plan
was prepared in the meeting of the Chief
Engineers from the various parts of the
country at the Nagpur, in 1943, which is
also known as the Nagpur road plan.
• It was the first ever major planning which
contributed a lot for the development of the
roads in the country. It classified the Indian
roads according to their location and
purpose, and also it laid down a target for a
density of road network of 16 km per 100
sq. Km in the country at the end of the 20
years road network in the year 1963.
 Features of Nagpur Road Plan

1. In the Nagpur plan, they divided the roads into four classes.

2. They proposed that road length should be increased so as to

provide a density of 16 km per 100 sq.km.

3. A hard, long-lasting crust would be provided for national and state

highways and for major district roads.

4. The committee suggested the development of roads as a star and

grid pattern throughout the country.

5. Within 20 years, the committee designed to construct 2 lakh km of

road throughout the country.
 Bombay Road Plan (1961-1981)
Catego Road Cost(Rs.
ry length(K Crores)
• By the end of the Nagpur plan, the m)
length of roads imagined under it was
NH 51,500 980
accomplished, however the roads
framework was insufficient in numerous SH 1,12,650 1,580
regards. The changed financial,
industrial and agricultural conditions in MDR 2,41,400 1,360
the nation in that period required a
review of the Nagpur design. ODR 2,89,680 650
• Hence, a second long-term plan of 20-
VR 3,62,100 630
year was drafted by the Roads wing of
Government of India, which is popularly
Total 10,57,330 5200
known as the Bombay plan.
 Features of Bombay Plan
•The aggregate street length focused to develop was around 10 lakhs km
which will give a road density of 32 km per 100 sq. km. 40 percent of the
length would be surfaced.

• The construction of 1600 km of expressways was also included in the plan.

• Funds for highway financing should come not only from direct beneficiaries
(motor vehicles), but also from those on whom indirect benefits accrue.
Sources which may be tapped are betterment levy, land revenue, toll projects
and tax on diesel oil used for motor vehicles.

• The question of vesting authority with road engineers to remove

encroachments needs to be examined.

• Traffic engineering cells should be established in each State.

 Lucknow Road Plan (1981-2001)
According to Lucknow Road Plan:-
• Roads should be classified for India as
follow:
(a) Primary system : (i) Expressways
(ii) National
Highways.
(b) Secondary system : (i) State
highways
(ii) Major District
Roads.
(c) Tertiary system (Rural Roads) :
(i) Other District
Roads (ii)Village
Roads. Back
 Motor Vehicle Act
• The act deals with :-
1. Construction equipment and maintenance.
2. Standards for components and parts.
3. Anti-pollution control devices.
4. Issue of testing fitness certificates.
5. Registration marks.
• It was formed in 1939.
• To regulate the road traffic in the form of traffic laws, ordinances and
regulations.
• Three phases primarily covered are control of driver, vehicle ownership and
vehicle operation.
• It was revised on 1988.

Back
 Classification of roads in India
• Roads should be classified for India as follow:
(a) Primary system : (i) Expressways
(ii) National Highways.
(b) Secondary system : (i) State highways
(ii) Major District Roads.
(c) Tertiary system : (i) Other District Roads
(ii) Village Roads.
• Road length for the year 2001 should be 27,00,000 km giving a density
of 82 km/100 sq. km.
• Expressways should be constructed on major traffic corridors to provide
speedy travel.
• National Highways should form a square grid of 100 km x 100 km..
• The Major District Roads should serve and connect all towns and
villages with a population of 1,500 and above.
 Following formula give the lengths of various
classes of roads as per the above guidelines:
1. Length of NH (in kin) = (area/10000) = (area in sq.Km/50)

2. Length of SH (in km) = (area in sq.Km/25 )

or Length (in km) = 62.5 x Number of towns with population above
5,000 – (area in sq.km/50)

3. Length of MDR (in km) = (area in sq.km/12.5)

or Length (in km) = 90 x Number of towns with population above
5,000

4. Total road length (in km) = 4.74 x Number of villages and town

5. Rural Road Length (in km) = This can be calculated by finding the
total road length and subtracting the other categories. Back
 Highway Planning
• Planning is a prerequisite for any engineering activity or project;
this is particularly true for the development of a highway network
or system in a country.
• Planning a highway network for safe, efficient and fast movement of
people and goods.
• Keeping the overall cost of construction and maintenance of the
roads in the network to a minimum.
• Planning for future development and anticipated traffic needs for a
specific design period.
• Phasing road development programmes from considerations of
utility and importance as also of financial resources.
 For assessing the required road length for the area, field studies
are to be carried out to collect the necessary data as following :-

• (i) Economic Studies:- Details of the existing facilities, their utility, distribution of the
existing population in the area, population growth trends, existing products in the
agricultural and industrial sectors, future trends of development in these sectors, existing
communication and education facilities, and the per capita income are to be collected.

• (ii) Road Use Studies:- Details of the existing road facilities, traffic volume in vehicles per
day, traffic flow patterns, classes of traffic such as passenger cars, busses and trucks, loads
carried, average speeds, anticipated future trends of traffic growth, and other traffic-related
studies are to be conducted.

• (iii) Engineering Studies:- These include study of the topography, soil, road life and special
problems, if any, relating to construction, drainage and maintenance.

• (iv) Financial Studies:- Various financial aspects such as the sources of funding, estimated
revenue from taxes on vehicles, toll tax, and indirect benefits of raising the living standards
of the people due to the proposed road network are considered.
 The main patterns in use in urban areas are:

1. Grid Iron Pattern - This is also known as

rectangular or block pattern and is perhaps
the simplest. The Romans preferred it, as
have the Americans who adopted it in many
of their cities. This is easy to set out in
straight lines and rectangular co-ordinates,
and is suitable for flat terrain.

2. Radial Pattern- In this pattern, roads

emanate from a central focal area, which
may be a business centre or an important
public building. In order to ease the
congestion in the focal area, ring roads are
provided; there can be several such roads—
inner, intermediate and outer—depending on
the requirements of the traffic.

3. Hexagonal Pattern- The basic figure of the

road network in this case is a hexagon; each
hexagon has at least one side common with
an adjacent pattern.
Back
 4 E’s of Transportation Safety
• Engineering
• Education
• Encouragement
• Enforcement

Back
Overtaking Sight Distance
• 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.
Back
 Super Elevation
• When a vehicle travels in a circular path or curved path,
it is subjected to an outward force which makes a vehicle
to overturn and skid due to Centrifugal force.
• To overcome this force
and for safe travel of a
vehicle, the outer edge
of the road is raised
above the inner edge.
This is known as
super elevation or
banking of road.
 Advantages of providing Super elevation:-

• Super elevation is provided to achieve the higher speed of

vehicles.
It increases the stability of fast-moving vehicles when
they pass through a horizontal curve, and it also
decreases the stresses on the foundation.
• In the absence of super elevation on the road along
curves, potholes are likely to occur at the outer edge of
the road.
• The Indian road congress(IRC) has prescribed the max
value of super elevation is 1 in 15.
 Types of Gradient
1. Ruling gradient- The gradient usually adopted while making the road
alignment is called the ruling gradient. It is the maximum gradient within
which the designer attempts to design the vertical profile of a road. It is
also known as design gradient

2. Limiting gradient- The gradient steeper than the ruling gradient, which
may be used for a limited Road length, is called limiting gradient or
maximum gradient. It is used where the topography of place compels
adopting a steeper gradient than the ruling gradient to minimize the cost
of road construction.

3. Exceptional gradient- The gradient steeper than the limiting gradient

which may be used in short length of road, only in an extraordinary
situation is called exponential gradient. This type of gradient is adopted
only in a very difficult situation and for a short length not exceeding 100 m
at a stretch.
4. Minimum gradient- The minimum
desirable slope essential for effective
drainage of rainwater from the road
surface is called minimum gradient.
The desirable minimum gradient for
this purpose is 0.5 % if the side drains
are lined and 1 % if the side drains are
unlined.
5. Average gradient- It is the ratio of
total rise or fall to the horizontal
distance between any two points along
the alignment of the road.
6. Floating gradient- The gradient on
which a motor vehicle moving with
a constant speed continues to descend
with the same speed without any
application of power brakes is called
floating gradient.
 Extra Widening Of Pavement On
Curve Road
• When a vehicle takes a turn to negotiate a horizontal curve, the rear
wheels do not follow the same path as that of the front wheels.
Normally the rear wheels follow the inner path on the curve as
compared with front wheels.

• The vehicle has occupies more width that it occupies on straight

portion of the road. To compensate this, the carriageway width
increased on the entire curved portion of the road, which is
called extra widening of pavement on curve.
 The formula of Extra widening
The total extra widening (We) required on a horizontal
curve is given by the following equation:

We (in m) = Mechanical widening(Wm) +

Psychological widening(Wps) = nl²/2R + V/9.5√R

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