Taxiway Design

Introduction
• The main function of taxiway is to provide access from the runway
to the terminal area and service hangars. It is evident that the
speed of aircraft on the taxiway will be much less than that on the
runway at the time of landing or take-off.
• The standards for the taxiway design and construction will therefore
not be as rigorous as for the runways.
• An apron taxiway is a taxiway located usually on the periphery of
an apron. The term dual parallel taxiways refer to two taxiways
parallel to each other on which airplanes can taxi in the opposite
directions. A terminal taxilane is a taxiway on an apron used for the
access to the gate positions.
 Layouts of Taxiways
Following are the factors which govern the layout of the taxiways:
• Arrangement: The arrangement of taxiways should be such that the
aircraft which has just landed does not interfere with the aircraft taxiing to
takeoff.
• Busy airports: It is desirable to locate taxiways at various points along the
runway on busy airports. It will then be possible for the landing aircraft to
leave the runway as early as possible for making it clear for use by other
aircraft. Such taxiways are called as exit taxiways or turnoffs.
• Crossing: As far as possible, the crossing or inter-section of the taxiway
and active runway should be avoided.
• Higher turn-off speeds: If exit taxiways are designed for high turn-off
speeds, the runway occupancy of the landing aircraft is reduced. It will
thus result in the increase of the airport capacity.
• Route: The selection of the route of taxiway should be made in such a way
that it results in the shortest practicable distance from the terminal area to
the end of the runway used for the take-off.
 Geometric standards for Taxiway
Elements of the geometric standards for taxiway are as under:
• Length of taxiway
• Longitudinal gradient
• Rate of change of longitudinal gradient
• Sight distance
• Transverse gradient
• Turning radius
• Width of safety area
• Width of taxiway
 Geometric standards for Taxiway
• Length of taxiway
The length of a taxiway depends upon the distance between the apron
and entry end or exit end of the runway. The limiting length of the
taxiway is not recommended by any organization. But to save fuel
consumption, it should be as short as practicable.
• Longitudinal gradient
If the longitudinal gradient is steep, there will be more consumption of
fuel. The maximum longitudinal gradients recommended by the ICAO
are as follows:
For A, B and C types of airport………………………………1.50%
For D and E types of airport………………………………….3.00%
 Geometric standards for Taxiway
• Rate of change of longitudinal gradient
The available sight distance on the pavement is affected by the rate of
change of longitudinal gradient. The maximum rates of change of slope for
30 m length of vertical curve are recommended by ICAO as follows:
For A, B and C types of airport………………………………1.00%
For D and E types of airport………………………………….1.20%
• Sight distance
The speed of the aircraft on the taxiway is lower than its speed on the
runway. Hence, the smaller values of sight distance will be sufficient on the
taxiway. With respect to sight distance, the recommendations of the ICAO
are as follows:
i. For A, B and C types of airports, the surface of the taxiway should be
seen for a distance of 195 m from a point 2.10 m above the taxiway.
ii. For D and E types of airports, the comparable dimensions are 300 m
and 3 m.
 Geometric standards for Taxiway
• Transverse gradient
For quick disposal of the surface water, it is necessary to provide the
transverse gradient for the taxiway. The ICAO recommends the following
maximum transverse gradients:
For A, B and C types of airport………………………………1.50%
For D and E types of airport………………………………….2.00%
It is desirable to provide minimum transverse gradient of at least 0.50%.
For shoulders, 3% transverse gradient for first 3 m width and thereafter
2% gradient is desirable.
• Turning radius
A horizontal curve is to be provided whenever there is a change in the
direction of the taxiway. It is necessary to design the curve in such a way
that the aircraft can negotiate it without significantly reducing the speed.
For this purpose, the circular curve of large radius is most suitable and its
radius can be obtained from the following formula:
 Geometric standards for Taxiway
•• Turning radius continued…
 
where, R = Radius of curve (m)
V = Speed of aircraft (km/h)
f = Coefficient of friction between tyre and pavement
surface (usually assumed as 0.13)
For airports serving large subsonic jet planes, the minimum value of
radius of curvature is taken as 120 m, irrespective of the speed. For
super sonic jet planes, the minimum radius of 180 m is recommended.
 Geometric standards for Taxiway
• Turning radius continued…
Figure illustrates the path
followed by a supersonic
aircraft having wheel base of
31.2 m on a taxiway having
curve of 60 m radius.
It is recommended that the
radius of the curve should be
such that a minimum distance
of 6 m is maintained between
the nearby main gear and the
edge of the pavement.
 Geometric standards for Taxiway
• Turning radius continued…
•  
The equation is as follows:
[Horonjeff’s equation]
where,
R = Radius of centre-line of taxiway
(m)
W = Wheel base of aircraft (m)
T = Width of taxiway pavement (m)
S = Distance between point midway
of the main gears and the
edge of taxiway pavement (m)
If the pilot maintains the nose gear on the centre-line of the taxiway having radius worked
out from the previous equation, the main gear of the aircrafts would not come closer than
6 m from the edge of the pavement
 Geometric standards for Taxiway
• Turning radius continued…
•  
If the existing airport has to be
upgraded to accommodate the
supersonic jet, it may not be feasible
sometimes to increase the radius of the
existing taxiway pavement. Under such
circumstances, the taxiway widening
may be carried out as shown in figure.
The following expressions are used to
find out the values of R1 and R2:
 If the expression gives value less than 0.5T, no widening of taxiway is required. If it is greater
than 0.5T, the radius R1 is worked out from the following equation:

where, R, W, S and T as above; and .

If D is less than W, then W is to be used instead of D.
 Geometric standards for Taxiway
• Width of safety area
The safety area of the taxiway is made up of partially paved shoulders on either side plus
the area which is graded and drained. It may extend up to a point where it intersects a
parallel runway, taxiway or apron.
Before the advent of jet aircrafts, the shoulders were given either of the following two
treatments:
– Natural ground protected with low growing vegetation or
– Stabilized granular material coating where the soil or climatic conditions do not permit easy
maintenance of plantation.
With the arrival of jet aircrafts, it became necessary to protect the shoulders from soil
erosion due to high speed of the jet exhaust. It is therefore suggested that a minimum
width of 7.5 m of shoulders adjacent to the pavement edge should be paved with light
strength material with the following particulars:
• The shoulder must be thick enough to support the airport petrol vehicles and the sweeping
equipment.
• The shoulders should normally be treated with bitumen.
• The surface should be made of such materials that disintegration due to the hot blast of the jet engine
does not occur.
• The surface should be smooth and impervious.
 Geometric standards for Taxiway
• Width of taxiway
The width of taxiway is much less than a runway because of the following factors:
– The aircrafts are not air-borne of the taxiways.
– The speed of the aircrafts on the taxiways is far less as compared to that on the runways
and hence, it is possible for the pilot to manoeuvre easily on the small width of taxiway than
on runway.
The taxiway widths recommended by the ICAO are as follows:
For A and B types of airport………………………..22.5 m
For C type of airport……………………………………15.0 m
For D type airport………………………………………..9.9 m
For E type of airport……………………………………..7.5 m.
 Exit Taxiways
The function of exit taxiways is to minimize the runway occupancy by the landing
aircraft. The location of exit taxiways depends on the following factors:
• Air traffic control: The rapidity and the manner in which air traffic control can
process arrivals is an extremely important factor in establishing the location
of the exit taxiways.
• Exit speed: The aircraft will require certain length of runway to bring down its
landing speed to the turn-off speed. The maximum speed with which an
aircraft can turn and enter the exit taxiway is governed by the type of aircraft.
This value of exit speed will decide the location of the exit taxiway.
• Location of runways: The location of the exit taxiways is also influenced by
the location of the runways relative to the terminal area.
• Number of exits: The number of exit taxiways to be provided will decide their
location. For instance, if only two exit taxiways are to be provided, they would
naturally be placed at the ends of runway. If there are more number of exit
taxiways, they will be suitably placed along the length of runway.
 Exit Taxiways
• Pilot variability: The rules for flying transport are relatively precise.
But even then, a certain amount of variability among the pilots is
bound to occur, especially in respect to the braking force applied on
the runway and the distance from runway threshold to touchdown.
• Topographical features: These include high altitude, deep valley,
obstructions in approach and turning zones, etc. They have also
some impact on the location of the exit taxiways.
• Types of aircraft: The landing speeds for various aircrafts are
different and accordingly, the distance required to reduce the speed
to the exit speed level will also vary. The types of aircraft likely to use
the runway should therefore be studied.
• Weather conditions: The time required by the aircraft to slow down
to the exit speed is influenced by factors like wind, temperature, etc.
 Optimum location of Exit Taxiways
The landing process of an aircraft can be described as follows:
• The aircraft crosses the runway threshold and decelerates in the air
until the main landing gear touches the surface of the pavement.
• The nose gear has yet not made contact with the runway at this
point. It may require about 3 seconds or so to do the contact.
• No form of braking can be applied until the nose gear has made
contact with the pavement.
• As soon as the contact with the pavement is made, the reverse
thrust or wheel brakes or a combination of both are used to reduce
the forward speed of the aircraft to the exit velocity.
The acceptance rate of runway with a system of the exit taxiways
should be nearly equal to the arrival rate of the aircrafts.
 Optimum location of Exit Taxiways
From the figure, it is observed that the
airport can accept all the aircrafts up to a
certain point and that point onwards, the
acceptance rate starts to deviate from the
arrival rate. The ideal relationship of equal
arrival and acceptance occurs at the
balance point and if indicates the situation
when the runway is loaded to its full
capacity. Such a situation is called as the
runway saturation.
After the balance point, the airport is
unable to accept all the aircrafts and few
of them have to be waved off.
The optimum location of the exitway is defined as the location for a given
set of conditions yielding the highest possible rate of acceptance.
 Optimum location of Exit Taxiways
•  a result of intensive study carried out on the models, the FAA has
As
recommended the following optimum distance of the exit taxiways
from runway threshold for different types of aircraft:
S. No. Type of aircraft Optimum distance (m)
Twin-engine propeller driven transports and large twin-
1 750
engine general aviation aircraft
Four-engine propeller driven transports, turbo prop and
2 1200
twin-engine turbo jets
3 Large turbo jet transports 1800

The above distances are for a standard day at mean sea level. The
following correction is recommended for altitude and temperature:
 Optimum location of Exit Taxiways
where, S2 = Distance from the runway end to the exit taxiway on a standard
day (m)
S1 = Distance from the runway end to the exit taxiway corrected for
altitude and temperature (m)
M = 150 for turbo jet and 195 for all other aircrafts
P = Standard air pressure at the site (cm of mercury)
t = Average temperature of the hottest month at the site (oC)

The above correction assumes zero wind i.e. the aircraft would not
miss the exit taxiway due to the wind. If the wind velocity is too high,
its effect should also be considered. As a rough guide, it is assumed
that the head wind of about 16 km/h may cause approximately 13.5%
reduction in the distance to the exit speed.
 Design of Exit Taxiway
Following are the principles governing the design of the exit taxiway
connecting runway and parallel taxiway:
• Angle of turn: Total angle of turn of 30o to 45o can be negotiated in a
satisfactory manner. The smaller angles are preferable because the
length of the curved path is reduced. Sight distance is improved and
less concentration is required on the part of the pilots. The right
angle exitways, although not desirable from the consideration of
minimizing the runway occupancy, are sometimes constructed for
other reasons.
• Compound curve: It is necessary to provide a compound curve for
high turn-off speeds of 65 to 95 km/h. it minimizes the tyre wear on
the nose gear and is relatively easier to establish it in the field. Its
shape is similar to that of a spiral.
 Design of Exit Taxiway
• Compound curve continued:
As shown in figure, the main curve of radius
R2 should be preceded by a large curve of
radius R1. The values of R1 found
experimentally suitable for different speeds
are as follows:
S. No. Speed (km/h) R1 (m)
1 65 517
2 80 731
3 95 941

Where, R1 = Radius of entrance curve

R2 = Radius of central curve
L1 = Length of entrance curve
L2 = Length of central curve
 Design of Exit Taxiway
•• Exit speed: The most significant factor affecting the turning radius
 
is the exit speed of the aircraft and not the total angle of turn nor
the passenger comfort.
• Lengths L1 and L2: The values of L1 and L2 i.e., lengths of entrance
curves can be obtained by using the following equations:

The value of constant C is 0.39 and D2 is the deflection angle of the

central curve.
 Design of Exit Taxiway
• Occupancy time: The occupancy time of an aircraft before entering
the taxiway from the runway is composed of the following four
components:
– Time required for the flight from the threshold to the touchdown of the main
gear.
– Time required for the nose gear to make contact with the pavement after the
main gear has made contact. It is about 3 seconds.
– Time required to reach exit velocity from the time nose gear has made contact
with the pavement and the brakes have been applied.
– Time required for the aircraft to turn-off to the taxiway and clear the runway. It
is about 10 seconds.
• Shape of taxiway: A slightly widened entrance of 30 m gradually
tapering to the normal width of taxiway is preferred. The widened
entrance gives more latitude to the pilot in using the exit taxiway.
 Design of Exit Taxiway
•• Stopping distance: It is necessary to provide sufficient distance to
 
comfortably decelerate an aircraft after it leaves the runway. This
distance is measured from the edge of the runway pavement along
the exit taxiway and is known as the stopping distance. The
equation to find out the stopping distance is as follows:

The average deceleration rate, d, is usually taken as 1 m/sec2.

• Turning radius: The turning radius for smooth and comfortable turn
is calculated by the equation mentioned earlier, namely,
 Fillets
At the junction or intersection of two traffic
ways such as points A and B, as shown in
figure, cannot be left unattended. But they
should be provided with corner fillets so as
to provide a smooth curve.
If the fillets are not provided, the main gear
of the aircraft may go off the pavement
edge and may come on the taxiway
shoulder while the aircraft negotiates the
junction of runway and taxiway.

No. Angle of intersection Radii of fillets (mm)

Small airports serving general Large airports serving
aviation aircrafts transport category aircrafts
1 0o - 45o 7.50 22.50
2 45o – 135o 15.00 30.00
3 More than 135o 60.00 60.00
 Separation clearance
To provide a margin of safety in the airport operating areas, the traffic ways must be
separated sufficiently from each other and from adjacent structures.

The separation clearance depends on the following three factors:

• Navigational aids available at the airport,
• Type of airport
• Wing span of the aircraft.