Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Karma Tenzin
Principal Engineer
Design Division
Department of Roads
MoWHS, Thimphu
Classification of Road
1. National Highway
Asian Highway Phuentshogling-Thimphu (AH48)
Primary National Highway (PNH)
Secondary National Highway (SNH)
2. Dzongkhag Roads
3. Farm Roads
4. Thromde Roads
5. Access Road
Classification of Road
1. National Highway
Asian Highway Phuentshogling-Thimphu (AH48)
The Phuentshogling-Thimphu Highway is designated by the Royal Government as the Asian
Highway route No.48 within Bhutan. The design standards for the Asian Highway specified
in the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Asian Highway Network are equivalent to the
design standards of Primary National Highway (PNH)
It should be the shortest route between two designated points and provide width for two lane
traffic. The formation width of SNH will 8.5 m. The existing District Roads will be re-designated as
SNHs
DoR will be solely responsible for planning and implementation of AH, PNH and SNH. DoR shall also
be the authority for development of the national road network with full authority to set technical
standards for all classes of roads and bridges, including re-classification of roads, as and when it is
necessary to match the socio-economic development of the country.
All AHs, PNHs and SNHs shall have necessary safety measures including road signs and guardrails as
per the DoR standards.
Classification of Road
2. Dzongkhag Roads
The Dzongkhag Road will be one that:
connects a Dzongkhag Centre and an Integrated Gewog Centre/Gewog Administration Office;
connects a Dzongkhag Centre and a Dungkhag Centre not otherwise designated as AH, PNH,
SNH;
connects a Dungkhag Centre with another Dungkhag Centre within the Dzongkhag not
otherwise designated as AH, PNH, SNH;
connects a Dungkhag Centre with a Gewog Centre/Gewog Administration Office;
connects an Integrated Gewog Centre/Centres to an existing road of equal or higher
classification.
Planning, prioritization and budgeting of the Dzongkhag Roads will be done by respective
Dzongkhag Tshogdu
Classification of Road
3. Farm Roads
Farm Roads are roads that link farmland areas/villages to an existing road of equal or higher
classification to enable the transportation of inputs to the farm and agriculture produce to
the market. Like other higher classes of roads, construction of Farm Roads should be inclusive
of cost of appropriate bridges.
Prioritization/selection of Farm Roads will be done by the Gewog Tshogde based on the
criteria set by the Department of Agriculture (DoA). The design standards for Farm Roads will
be set by DoR in consultation with MoA. See Annex-1 for proposed design standards for Farm
Roads.
Due to the limited capacity of the Gewog Administration, the Dzongkhag Administration will
carry out pre-investment studies, geotechnical investigations, survey, design and procurement
for Farm Roads with technical backstopping from DoA.
Planning, prioritization, budgeting and implementation of Farm Roads will be done by the
respective Gewogs with technical backstopping from Dzongkhag Administration/DoA.
Classification of Road
4. Access Road
Access Roads are roads listed below
Forest Roads, Health Roads, Education Roads, Telecommunications Roads, Power Roads,
Private Road, Project Road & Public Road
Design standards for Access Roads Technical backstopping such as provision of design
standards and specifications for Access Roads will be provided by DoR in consultation with
the concerned agencies.
Design and take off point for access roads shall be approved by the Department of Roads.
Access Roads should be constructed to a minimum of Farm Road standard.
DBM + AC
Soling
Base course
Sub base
Hard shoulder
Compacted granular soil
ROW = 30 m
8.50 m
Formation Width
Soling
Base course
Sub base
Hard shoulder
Compacted granular soil
ROW = 20 m
6.50 m
Formation Width
3.50 m 1.00 m
1.00 m Carriageway
Shoulder Drain
(incl. parapet)
Dzongkhag / GC Road
Road Features
4. Farm Roads (FR)
ROW = 12.2 m
5.10 m
Formation Width
Carriageway
0.50m 0.50m 0.60m
3.50m L-drain
Shoulder Shoulder
(incl. parapet)
5% 4% 4% 5%
Base course
Sub base Soling
Hard shoulder
Compacted granular soil
Farm Road
Road Features
5. Access Roads (AR) (Minimum Requirement)
4.00 m
Formation Width
3.00 m 0.50 m
0.50 m Carriageway
Shoulder Drain
Base course
Sub base
Hard shoulder
Compacted granular soil
Access Road
Road Features
6. Thromde Roads
General Stages of Road Planning
Survey & Design is required mainly to address the following points; not
necessarily limited to:
Cost Optimization
Fairly accurate cost estimation
To decrease time of construction so that benefit to the road user is achieved
earlier than expected.
Attach engineering attributes and geometrics such as stability, gradient,
water management, curvature, super elevation, width, structures etc.
Comfort and aesthetic realization
Employment generation and environment protection etc
General Stages of Road Planning
Some of the governing principles that are required to be considered during desk
top study are:
The alignment should take into account all the control points and should be
shortest and economical.
Marshy areas, steep terrain, landslide, unstable hill features etc should be
avoided. Stereographic use of aerial photographs are recommended.
Need of connecting important villages and towns
Bridge site locations
General Stages of Road Planning
Map study is carried out using available topographical map and now a days using
google earth from internet. 2 or 3 alternative alignments are marked on the topo
map between two known points i.e takeoff and terminal points. The gradient of
the alignment in the map is maintained by the distance of crossing point
between one contour to another contour. It is determined by the simple
equation;
X=
General Stages of Road Planning
Example
Contour interval = 40m
Gradient required = 5% (0.05)
Scale of the map = 1/50000
Distance X = (40/0.050)*1/50000
= 0.016m
= 1.6cm
Therefore, the second contour will be crossed at the distance of 1.6cm from first
contour which will give 5% slope / gradient
General Stages of Road Planning
Example
General Stages of Road Planning
Example
General Stages of Road Planning
In Feasibility Study the following must be included:
1. Team from the head office in Thimphu
1. Team Leader Design Engineer
2. Surveyor Who will be involved in doing the survey
3. Geo-Tech Engineer
4. Bridge Engineer
2. Engineer from the concerned Dzongkhag Administrative
3. Environmental Officer from the concerned Dzongkhag Administrative
4. Forest Officer from the concerned Dzongkhag Administrative/Park
5. Engineer from the concerned Regional Office, DoR
6. Representative from the concerned Gewog.
General Stages of Road Planning
Feasibility Study Report
Based on the feasibility study report, the authority will approve one suitable alignment. This alignment
which is approved for adoption will have to be transferred to the ground. This is done by fixing the
wooden pegs at an interval of 20m with the help of clinometers or abney level and measuring tape. It is
suppose to be an approximate center line having a gradient that is given in the feasibility report.
Each alignment peg should contain the information such as chainage and gradient. This phase of survey,
though simple is considered to be very important. It should be usually carried out by experienced
survey engineer or civil engineer. Once this phase of survey is completed, change of alignment in future
is very difficult.
During this phase of survey, the data recorded are: Exact length of road, number of cross drainages
required, number of hairpin bends introduced, gradient adopted, soil classification, bridge points and
its span etc. A brief report shall be submitted where concern authority will instruct to carry on with
further survey works which is called detail survey.
General Stages of Road Planning
Detail Survey using Total Station
Detail survey which is also known as topographic survey will commence immediately using
total station instrument. Collection of topographic data is carried out along the proposed
road corridor in combination with traverse survey. In order to attain the line of sight any
obstructions such as bushes and small trees should be cleared.
The corridor of about 50m ie 30m towards hill side and 20m towards valley side of centerline
should be made visible to the survey instrument. The data that are collected during detail survey
phase are : All topographic features such as gullies, ridge, natural surface, change of grade, any
man made features, cliff, boundary pillars, fence, cultivated land, Ghat tracing pegs, prominent
trees etc.
For future references at least 2 nos. of traverse stations per km of alignment shall be made
permanent. This type of survey is very time consuming but unavoidable and without which
geometric design is not possible. This type of survey demand use of other associated equipment
such as computer, generators if electricity is not available. The data that is collected during such
detail survey is downloaded to the computer using appropriate software and then handed over to
design engineers.
General Stages of Road Planning
Detail Road Design
Geometric design is carried out based on the detail survey data collected earlier. The parameters
that are considered in geometric design are: Classification of Road, Design Speed, Horizontal
Alignment, Formation & Cross Section, Sight Distance, Super elevation, Vertical Alignment,
Gradient etc. Geometric design is carried out using computer software such as MXROAD,
Geocomp etc. The designer is required to visit the site for verification of his/her preliminary design
before the finalizing the design.
Necessary drawings and set out data are produced. Drawings include Plan, longitudinal section,
cross section to the required scale. Cross sections are generally taken at 20m interval for straight
sections and more close for curve sections. Set out data such as station set out, centerline set out,
batter set out, earthwork quantities etc are produced.
Environment friendly road construction technique to be adopted in the geometric design through
optimization of cut and fill involved in the earthworks. Environment friendly road design aptly
demonstrates that a slight shift of the centerline to the valley side can result in substantial
reduction of earthworks and height of hill side cut
Road Design
Road Design
Table showing speed, terrain and curve radius.
Minimum Design Speed KM/Hr. for Terrain Type
Road class (Minimum Curve Radius in meter)
Plain Rolling Mountainous Steep
Primary
National 80 (280) 70 (200) 60 (120) 50 (75)
High way
Secondary
National 80 (280) 70 (200) 60 (120) 50 (75)
Highway
Dzongkhag
70 (200) 60 (120) 50 (75) 40 (45)
Road
Farm Road 50 (75) 40 (45) 30 (25) 20 (15)
Road Design
MATERIAL PAVEMENT SHOULDER
SURFACE TYPE CROSSFALL CROSSFALL
Earth, Loam 5% 6%
Gravel, Waterbound
3-4% 5%
Macadam
Bitumen seal coat 2.5 - 3 % 4%
Dense bituminous
premix or ridge 23% 3%
pavement
Super elevation 8% 8%
Drawings (Plan & L-Section)
Drawing (Cross Section)
General Stages of Road Planning
Setting out the alignment (Batter Pegging)
The purpose of set out survey is to lay out the final centerline of the road based on the
centerline fixed in the design office. Two main operations involved in this survey is fixing
centerline and batter pegs to guide the construction team. Both the pegs are fixed at 20m
interval with information such as chainage, gradient, cut and fill etc. are written on it. All such
pegs should be protected. See drawing in next slide.
Right Batter Peg
Centerline Peg
Height of Cut
CL Cut
Left Batter Peg
Height of Fill
Pavement Design
Design of pavement for roads, whether in plains or hills
follow the same basic principles like:
Soil properties
Traffic parameters
And also climatic conditions
Type of Pavement
Rigid Pavement
Flexible Pavement
Composite Pavement
Rigid Pavement
Flexible Pavement
Composite Pavement
Typical Pavement Layers
Advantages of Flexible Pavement
Adjusts to limited differential settlement
Easily, quickly constructed and repaired
Additional thickness can be added
Quieter smoother (Generally)
Disadvantages of Flexible Pavement
Properties may change over time as pavement ages
Generally shorter service life before first rehabilitation
May experiences moisture problems
Pavement Design (Flexible)
Design procedure
Based on the performance of existing designs and using analytical approach,
simple design charts and a catalogue of pavement designs are added in the IRC
code. The pavement designs are given for subgrade CBR values ranging from 2%
to 10% and design traffic ranging from 1 msa to 150 msa for an average annual
pavement temperature of 35 C. Using the following simple input parameters,
appropriate designs could be chosen for the given traffic and soil strength:
= 7200000
= 7.2 msa
Total pavement thickness for CBR 4% and traffic 7.2 msa from our Chart = 525 mm + 200 mm SR
Pavement composition can be obtained by interpolation from Pavement Thickness chart.
(a) Bituminous surfacing = 40 mm AC + 60 mm DBM
(b) Base course = 200 mm WWM
(c) sub-base = 225 mm GSB
(d) Soil replacement of 200 mm
Road Maintenance
WHY IS MAINTENANCE IMPORTANT?
Roads are among the most important public assets in many countries. Road
improvements bring immediate and sometimes dramatic benefits to road users through
improved access to hospitals, schools, and markets; improved comfort, speed, and
safety; and lower vehicle operating costs. For these benefits to be sustained, road
improvements must be followed by a well-planned program of maintenance. Without
regular maintenance, roads can rapidly fall into disrepair, preventing realization of the
longer term impacts of road improvements on development, such as increased
agricultural production and growth in school enrollment.
Postponing road maintenance results in high direct and indirect costs. If road defects are
repaired promptly, the cost is usually modest. If defects are neglected, an entire road
section may fail completely, requiring full reconstruction at three times or more the cost,
on average, of maintenance costs.
Delayed maintenance has indirect costs as well. Neglected roads steadily become more
difficult to use, resulting in increased vehicle operating costs (more frequent repairs,
more fuel use) and a reluctance by transport operators to use the roads. This imposes a
heavy burden on the economy: as passenger and freight services are curtailed, there is a
consequent loss of economic and social development opportunities.
Road Maintenance
TYPES OF MAINTENANCE
Routine Maintenance
Periodic Maintenance
Emergency Maintenance
Road Maintenance
Routine Maintenance
Which comprises small-scale works conducted regularly, aims to ensure the daily
passability and safety of existing roads in the short-run and to prevent premature
deterioration of the roads.
Frequency of activities varies but is generally once or more a week or month. Typical
activities include roadside verge clearing and grass cutting, cleaning of silted ditches
and culverts. For gravel roads it may include regrading every six months..
I. Sweeping
II. Grass cutting
III. Cleaning drain
IV. Clearing slips less than 1 cu.m
Road Maintenance
Periodic Maintenance
Which covers activities on a section of road at regular and relatively long intervals,
aims to preserve the structural integrity of the road.
These operations tend to be large scale, requiring specialized equipment and skilled
personnel. They cost more than routine maintenance works and require specific
identification and planning for implementation and often even design. Activities can be
classified as preventive, resurfacing, overlay, and pavement reconstruction. Resealing
and overlay works are generally undertaken in response to measured deterioration in
road conditions. For a paved road repaving is needed about every eight years; for a
gravel road re-graveling is needed about every three years.
I. Pothole repair
II. Resurfacing (5 years)
Road Maintenance
Emergency Maintenance
Alligator Cracking
Pavement Failure
Block cracks look like large
interconnected rectangles
(roughly). Block cracking is
not load-associated, but
generally caused by
shrinkage of the asphalt
pavement due to an inability
of asphalt binder to expand
and contract with
temperature cycles. This can
be because the mix was
mixed and placed too dry;
Fine aggregate mix with low
penetration asphalt &
absorptive aggregates; poor
choice of asphalt binder in
the mix design; or aging
dried out asphalt.
Block Cracking
Pavement Failure
Transverse Cracking
Pavement Failure
Edge Cracks travel along the
inside edge of a pavement
surface within one or two
feet. The most common
cause for this type of crack is
poor drainage conditions
and lack of support at the
pavement edge. As a result
underlying base materials
settle and become
weakened. Heavy vegetation
along the pavement edge
and heavy traffic can also be
the instigator of edge
cracking.
Edge Cracks
Pavement Failure
Slippage Cracks
Pavement Failure
Small, bowl-shaped
depressions in the pavement
surface that penetrate all the
way through the asphalt layer
down to the base course.
They generally have sharp
edges and vertical sides near
the top of the hole. Potholes
are the result of moisture
infiltration and usually the
end result of untreated
alligator cracking. As alligator
cracking becomes severe, the
interconnected cracks create
small chunks of pavement,
which can be dislodged as
vehicles drive over them. The
remaining hole after the
pavement chunk is dislodged
is called a pothole.
Pot Holes
Pavement Failure
Rutting
Pavement Failure
Shoving is the formation of
ripples across a pavement.
This characteristic shape is
why this type of distress is
sometimes called wash-
boarding. Shoving occurs at
locations having severe
horizontal stresses, such as
intersections. It is typically
caused by: excess asphalt;
too much fine aggregate;
rounded aggregate; too soft
an asphalt; or a weak
granular base.
Shoving
Pavement Failure
Upheaval is a localized
upward movement in a
pavement due to swelling of
the subgrade. This can be
due to expansive soils that
swell due to moisture or
frost heave (ice under the
pavement).
Upheaval
Pavement Failure
Raveling is the on-going
separation of aggregate
particles in a pavement from
the surface downward or
from the edges inward.
Usually, the fine aggregate
wears away first and then
leaves little "pock marks" on
the pavement surface. As
the erosion continues, larger
and larger particles are
broken free and the
pavement soon has the
rough and jagged
appearance typical of
surface erosion.
www.mowhs.gov.bt