TR 321

HIGHWAY ROUTE AND

GEOMETRIC DESIGN
(HRGD) (3.0 UNITS)

Highway Design
Standards
Objectives and learning
Outcomes
Objective:
 To introduce the concept of basic

design parameters and design

standards especially design speed
Learning Outcomes:
 The learner should be able to

determine the appropriate design

standards that matches the assumed
design parameters for a given project
Required Reading
 The Green Book:
 Chapter One and
 Chapter Two

 MoW Manual
 Chapter Two
 Chapter Four
Outline
1) Design parameters for a road project
 Terrain types and land use
 Functional Classification
 Traffic Characteristics

2) Design Vehicle for each road function

3) Design Standards
 Desired level of service
 Design speed
 Other design standards
1) Design Parameters
 At the beginning of the design
process design parameters must
be established:
 Terrain through which the

project road traverses

 Land use
 Projected traffic, and
 The road function
TERRAIN
 Topography
 Flat
 Rolling
 Mountainous and
 Escarpment (Rift valley

region)
Land use
 Two broad classes are recognized
 Rural (agriculture, forest,

savannah)
 Urban – built up areas – cities

towns and settlements

The fundamental difference is the
level of interaction between
vehicles and NMT.
In urban area presence of pedestrians, cyclists is a
major design consideration while for rural roads
Road Function
 Classification of highways into different
functional classes and geometric design
types is necessary for communication
among professionals and the public
 A complete functional design system
provides for a series of distinct travel
movements: main movement, transition,
distribution/collection, access and
termination
`
 Typically the main movement occurs on one or
more main roads where the movement is
uninterrupted high speed flow
 From the highway the highways vehicles
transitions to lower speed
collectors/distributors which carry them near
their destination
 Next the vehicle enters collector roads that
penetrates neighbourhoods
 Next the vehicle enters access roads to reach
their destination – individual residences
 Functional classification is used to group
roadways according to the type of
service they are INTENDED to provide:
 Mobility – ARTERIALS
 Distribution/Collection – COLLECTORS
 Access – Local / street
 Social Interaction – NMT facilities – Cycle
and pedestrian paths
 Two major considerations in classifying
roadways into functional classes is
mobility and access
 To enable arterials to function their basic
mobility function it is necessary to limit
access to adjacent property directly from
the arterial road
 To enhance the access function of the
local street network it is necessary to
limit their use for mobility function!
Design types
 For arterial roads design types include:
 Freeways / motorways: Complete access
control, all junctions are grade separated,
no stopping on the roadway
 Expressways: Some junctions are signalized
while others are grade separated, partial
access control
 Dual carriageways: some access control, all
junctions are at grade may be signalized or
un-signalized depending on demand
 Two-lane two-way roadways: junctions
are at grade, sometimes signalized,
limited access control
 For access roads: Two-lane two way
streets or one-way streets
Road network design
 Traffic planning determines the extent of traffic
demands and their modes and create a decision
criteria for the design, construction, and
operation of individual transportation modes
 The road network includes roadways exclusively
for motor vehicle traffic and roads for both
motorized traffic (MT) and non motorized traffic
(NMT)
 Must be fine-attuned to regional and urban
planning needs and it may necessary to design
the network to restrict avoidable traffic and
design only for the essential traffic
Expected Traffic
Characteristics
 THE DESIGN OBJECTIVE: Traffic capacity -
can only be achieved if the expected
traffic volume (demand) during the
design year is reliably determined
 Current volume must be established and
the future (Projected) traffic during the
design year forecasted
 Traffic composition and other
characteristics need to be established
 Major Traffic Elements:

16

 Average Annual Daily Traffic (AADT)

or Average Daily Traffic (ADT)
 k factor (ratio of PHV)

 Design Hourly Volume (DHV)

 Directional Distribution (D)

 Percentage of Trucks (and RVs)

 Design Flow-rate (V) – Peak 15-

minute flow-rate
 Traffic Considerations:

17

• DHV = ADT (k) or AADT(k)

• k factor represents the percentage of
traffic occurring during the peak hour
during an average weekday.
• The DHV represents the 30th highest
hourly volume during a year.
• AASHTO recommends a k value of 8 to
12 percent for urban facilities and 12
to 18 percent for rural facilities.
 Traffic Considerations:

18

• V = DHV/PHF
• The design peak 15-minute flow-rate (V) is
computed by dividing the design hourly volume by
the peak hour factor (PHF).
• The PHF is a function of the development of the
surrounding area.
• The design peak 15-minute flow-rate in the more
heavily travelled direction is computed using the
directional distribution (D)
• The directional distribution (D) ranges from 55 to
80 percent with an average value of 67 percent
for rural roads.
 Traffic Considerations:
19

 The directional distribution (D) for a well planned

and developed urban facilities tends to
approximate an equal split in each direction (D
= .50).
 The composition of heavy vehicles (T) in the
traffic stream during the design hour typically
varies from 5 to 10 percent but in some cases
can be as high as 25 percent.
 Equivalent PCU or PCE are established on the
basis of vehicle performance characteristics and
terrain and used to convert vol of trucks and
buses to PC
Class Exercise
 Projected ADDT for a given road project
in a rural setting is 13,000 vpd including
15 percent trucks and buses during the
design year. Will a two way two lane
road with 3.64 m wide lanes be
adequate if the terrain is level? What if
the terrain is rolling?
 Assume truck/bus = 3.5 pc in level
terrain and 9 pcs in rolling terrain.
 Assume PHF = 0.85
 Assume reasonable value for D and k
2) Design Vehicle
 Design vehicles are selected to
represent all vehicles on the highway.
 The vehicle type selected is typically the
largest vehicle likely to use the highway
with “considerable” frequency.
 Design vehicles are specified for design
elements and for road function:
 PC for vertical curves – visibility
 Full trailer for turning roadways of arterial
roads
22

 The weight, physical dimensions, and

operating characteristics of the design
vehicle will be used to establish the
geometric features of the highway
element.
 Examples
• PC for vertical curve length
• HGV for maximum grades
• Semi or full trailer for turning paths at
intersections
 Typical dimensions of design vehicles
(e.g. Recommendations for EAC)

D Vehicle Length Width Height Min Wheel

Design Base
turning
radius
Passenger Car 5.8 2.1 1.3 7.31 3.35
Single unit bus 12.1 2.6 4.1 12.8 7.6
Single unit 9.1 2.6 4.6 12.8 6.1
truck
Full trailer 22.0 2.6 4.6 12.65 5.5+10.
0
 Design Speed
24

 AASHTO defines design speed as “a

selected speed to determine the various
geometric features of a roadway”
 It is the maximum safe speed that can
be sustained on a section of a roadway
when conditions are such that the
geometric features of the highway
governs speed
25

 Design Speed for a road project or

section of a road depends on:
 the functional classification of the highway,
 the topography of the area
 the adjacent land use and
 Traffic Volume
 Design speeds are selected to achieve a
desired level of operation (service) and
safety on a highway.
 Design Speed for various road classes

26

 Freeways are designed for 90 to 130

km/h
 Rural two-lane two way roads design
speeds of 100 to 110 are common.
 Urban collector roads may be designed
from 50 to 80 km/hr although lower
operational speeds are expected.
 Design Speeds range from 30 km/hr to
130 km/hr in increments of 10 km/hr.
 Cross-Section Elements:
27
(Determine standards for)

 Travel lanes (2.3 to 3.64 m; Camber

varies)
 Shoulders (range from 0.5 to 3.5 m)
 Medians
 Roadside barriers/ Pedestrian barriers
 Guardrails
 Side Slopes
 Curb (kerb) and Gutter (in urban areas)
 Design of the Alignment

28

 Minimum grade recommended for kerbed

section is 0.5%
 Vertical Curves:
 Must provide minimum stopping sight
distance
 Adequate drainage
 Comfortable operation
 Pleasant appearance
 Sag curves must meet these four criteria.
 Crest curves must only satisfy the first
criteria.
 Horizontal Curves
29

 Minimum radius (prevent run-off-the-

road for vehicles driven at the design
speed)
 Maximum superelevation
 Sideway friction
 Adequate SD
 Design Speed: General

30

• Freeways are designed for 90 (urban) to

130 km/h (rural)
• Design speeds are selected to achieve a
desired level of operation and safety on a
highway.
• Rural two-lane two way roads design
speeds of 100 to 110 are common.
• Urban roads = collector roads may be
designed from 50 to 80 km/hr although
lower operational speeds are expected.
 Freeways
31

 Design Speed
 Urban not less than 80 km/hr, should not be
so high as to cause un-necessary
expensed.
 Rural – 110, up to 130 km/hr
 Design traffic volume – projected traffic
20 yrs
 DDHV used to determine capacity
 LoS
 LoS B for rural areas
TR 320 Lecture 11: Road Safety Audit
 LoS D for urban areas
32

 Carriageway:
 Lane width 3.64 m,
 Camber 1.5% to 2%
 shoulder
 Desirable 3.0 m, paved.
 Superelevation
 Low speed, ice situations , max 6.0%
 Otherwise up to 8 to 12% No snow, high
speed

TR 320 Lecture 11: Road Safety Audit

33

 Grades
 Vary with design speed and terrain
 E.g. for 80 km/hr mountainous terrain max.
grade of 6% is rec. while for level terrain it
is 4%
 For 130 km/hr for rolling terrain 4% grades
are recommended and 3% for level terrain.
Design speed of 130 km/hr should not be
used in a mountainous terrain.

TR 320 Lecture 11: Road Safety Audit

 Arterial Roads
34

 Design speed
 60 to 120 km/hr depending on terrain
 Design traffic volume
 Normally 20 years into the future
 30th HV which is 15% of ADT/AADT
 Level of Service
 Service to provide the highest level of
service practicable, usually LoS B is
adopted except for mountainous sections
where LoS C is acceptable
TR 320 Lecture 11: Road Safety Audit
35

 Grades
 Recommended max. grades vary with
terrain
 Max. 8% for mountainous terrain with
design speed of 60 km/hr
 Max. of 3% for level terrain with design
speed of 130 km/hr

TR 320 Lecture 11: Road Safety Audit

36

 Number of lanes
 Determined based on required capacity,
LoS and projected volume
 Superelevation
 Maximum 12% if no snowing is expected
 Maximum 8% if snow is expected
 Camber
 Max. 1.5 to 2%

TR 320 Lecture 11: Road Safety Audit

37

 Vertical Clearance
 AASHTO recommends 4.9 m
 In Tz MoW 2011 Manual see
recommendations

 Lane/carriageway widths
 Depend on traffic and design speed
 E.g. For two lane highway, design speed 60
km/hr and 400 veh. per day a carriageway
width of 6.6 m is recommended.
TR 320 Lecture 11: Road Safety Audit
38

 For design speed of 80 km/hr and above

and over 1500 vpd a carriageway width
of 7.2 m is recommended
 Shoulder width:
 Depends on traffic volume
 1.2 m for 400 vpd
 1.8 for 400 to 2000 vpd
 2.4 for over 2000 vpd

TR 320 Lecture 11: Road Safety Audit

 Collectors and local streets
39

 Lower standards but also influenced very

much by traffic demand
 Design speed 70 km/hr or less. For level
terrain and over 2000 vpd design speed
of 100 km/hr is appropriate
 Volume: 20 yr projection
 Grades:
 Up to 12% on mountainous terrain is
acceptable

TR 320 Lecture 11: Road Safety Audit

40

 Width
 For low volume roads width of 6.0 m
including shoulders for design speed below
80 km/hr is recommended.
 Higher widths are recommended for higher
design speed and volumes beyond 1500

TR 320 Lecture 13:

Class exercise:
 Determine design standards for an
arterial road in rural setting, rolling
terrain with Design Hour Volume 2809
vph f which 20 percent are trucks (1
truck = 3pcs) and PHF 0.90.
Solution
Design Numbe Lane Maxim Maxim Design etc
Speed r of width um um vehicle
lanes grade Radius
Thank you for
your attention
and
participation