HIGHWAY AND RAILROAD ENGINEERING

QUIZ NO. 2

PROBLEMS:

1. Enumerate the different datas needed for the geometric design of Highway Facilities.

Geometric design of a highway deals with the dimensions and layout of visible
features of the highway such as horizontal and vertical alignment , sight distances and
intersections. The geometrics of highways should be designed to provide efficiency in
traffic operations with maximum safety at reasonable cost. It deals with the following
elements: cross-section elements , sight distance consideration , horizontal alignment
details , vertical alignment details and intersection elements.

2. Discuss five reasons on Factors Influencing Highway Design.

The first step in the design of any roadway is to choose the right set of geometric
design guidelines. As a result, when choosing geometric design guidelines, the
highway's features should be taken into account.
The design hourly volume is the projected hourly volume that is used for design.The
person driving, the vehicle type, the topography, and other factors all influence speed.
This is why highways are geometrically designed with design speed as a primary factor.
The design speed is the highest continuous speed, providing that the weather
conditions are favorable, that allows vehicles to move safely. It is easier to construct
roads with required standards for a plain terrain. However, for a given design speed, the
construction cost increases multi-form with the gradient and the terrain.The principal
elements of a highway cross-section consist of the travel lanes, shoulders and medians.
Also, environmental factors like air pollution, noise pollution, landscaping, aesthetics
and other global conditions should be given due consideration in the geometric design
of roads.

3. Why is Highway Drainage Design important? Explain.

Any highway or street should have adequate drainage systems to allow water to
move away from the pavement's surface into properly planned channels. The necessity
of adequate drainage is reflected in the amount of money spent on drainage systems
during highway building. Surface/subsurface water originating on or near the highway
right of way, or running in streams crossing the right of way, is collected, transported,
and disposed of by highway drainage. Roadway drainage is necessary because water
damages highway structures in a variety of ways.

4. How to classify Soils for Highway use? Elaborate.

Soil’s classification is a method by which soils are systematically grouped
according to their probable engineering characteristics. The American Association of
State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) classification system is based on
the Public Roads Classification System that was developed from the results of
extensive research. AASHTO Soil Classification System classifies soils into seven
primary groups, named A-1 through A-7, based on their relative expected quality for
road embankments, sub-grades, sub-bases, and bases. Some of the groups are in turn
divided into subgroups, such as A-1-a and A-1-b. Furthermore, a Group Index may be
calculated to quantify a soil’s expected performance within a group. To determine a
soil’s classification in the AASHTO system, one first determines the relative proportions
of gravel, coarse sand, fine sand, and silt-clay.
Atterberg limits are determined and the plasticity index is calculated. A soil is a
granular material if less than 35% of the soil by weight passes the No. 200 sieve (#200).
Granular materials are classified into groups A-1 through A-3. Soils having more than
35% passing the No. 200 sieve are silt-clay and fall in groups A-4 through A-7. Having
the proportions of the components and the plasticity data, one enters one of the two
alternatives AASHTO classification tables and checks from left to right until a
classification is found for which the soil meets the criteria. It should be noted that, in this
scheme, group A-3 is checked before A-2. Soils classified as A-1 are typically
well-graded mixtures of gravel, coarse sand, and fine sand. Soils in subgroup A-1-a
contain more gravel whereas those in A-1-b contain more sand. Soils in group A-3 are
typically fine sands that may contain small amounts of non-plastic silt. Group A-2
contains a wide variety of “borderline” granular materials that do not meet the criteria for
groups A-1 or A-3. Soils in group A-4 are silty soils, whereas those in group A-5 are
high-plasticity elastic silt. Soils in group A-6 are typically lean clays, and those in group
A-7 are typically highly plastic clays. Within groups containing fines, one may calculate
a group index to further evaluate relative quality and supporting value of a material as
subgrade.
5. Create a formula of a Simple Curve using the concept of Horizontal Alignment.
Idealize the figure.