CHAPTER 2

Highway Route Surveys

and Location
 Projects are planned and carried out using a sequence
of activities known as the “project Cycle.”
The cycle is composed of the following steps:-
 Identification
 Feasibility
 Design
 Commitment and Negotiation
 Implementation
 Operation
 Evaluation
Route corridor selection comprises of portion of the first
three of these activities.

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Identification
The first stage of the cycle is to find potential projects. This is
sometimes known is the “prefeasibility” stage.

There are many sources from which suggestions may come,

including well-informed technical specialists, local leaders,
proposals to extend existing programs or projects, and from
operating agencies responsible for project implementation.

The decision to proceed to the feasibility stage arouses

expectations for the project.

Dubious projects shall therefore be rejected at the

identification stage. It becomes increasingly difficult to stop a
project at the later stages of the cycle.
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2 Feasibility
The feasibility study will provide sufficient information to decide
whether to proceed to a more advanced stage of planning. The level of
detail of this study will depend on the complexity of the project and
how much is already known about the proposal.
•The feasibility study shall define the objectives of the project.

It shall consider alternative ways of achieving these and eliminating

poor alternatives.
Once the feasibility study has indicated which project is likely to be the
most worthwhile, detailed planning and analysis can begin and the
selected project may be redefined and modified as more detailed
information becomes available.

At this stage, studies of traffic, geotechnics and design will be carried

out to refine the prediction of costs and benefits and to enable an
economic
4 analysis to be carried out.
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3 Design
•Preliminary design and feasibility are often simultaneous, but detailed
design, which can be very costly (up to 15 percent of project costs),
usually follows a provisional commitment to the project.
•Numerous decisions, which will affect economic performance, are
taken throughout design; and economic appraisal often results in
redesign.

4 Commitment and Negotiation

•Commitment of funds often takes place is a series of stages.
•This is followed by invitation to tender and negotiations with
contractors, potential financiers and suppliers. At this stage, there are
still considerable uncertainties.

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5 Implementation

•The better and more realistic plan be carried out and the full benefits
realized.

•A flexible implementation plan shall be sought.

•It is almost inevitable that some circumstances will change during the
implementation.

•Technical changes may be required as more detailed soils

information becomes available or as the relative prices of
construction materials change.
•Project managers may need to change and re-plan parts of the project
to take account of such variations.

•The more innovative and novel the project is, the greater is the
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likelihood that changes will have to be made during implementation
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Eng. I , Route Selection
6 Operation
•This refers to the actual use of the road by traffic; it is during this
phase that benefits are realized and maintenance is undertaken.

7 Evaluation
•This is the final phase of the project cycle, consists of looking
back systematically at the successful and unsuccessful elements of
the project experience to learn how planning can be improved in the
future.

•For evaluation to be successful, it is important that data about the

project is collected and recorded in a systematic way throughout all
stages of the project cycle.

•The evaluation shall result in specific recommendations about

improving aspects of the project design, which can be used to
improve
7 on-going and future planning.
Highway Eng. I , Route Selection
Highway Alignment

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 Requirements of an ideal alignment
 Requirements of an ideal alignment between two
terminals include:

 Short
 A straight alignment would be the shortest, though
there may be several practical considerations which
would cause a deviation from the shortest path
 Easy
 Easy to construction
 Easy to maintain
 Easy for operation with easy grades and curves

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 Contd...
 Economical

 Design should consider initial capital cost, maintenance

cost, and operation cost

 Safe

 Safe enough for construction and maintenance from the

view point of stability of natural slopes, embankments, cut

slopes, and foundations
 Safe for traffic operations with easy geometric features
such as sharpness of curves, grades, side slopes and etc.

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 Factors Controlling Highway Alignment
 Obligatory Points
 Points through which the alignment is to pass
 Chosen Bridge Site, Intermediate town to be
accessed between the termini, a mountain
pass, etc.
 Points which should be avoided
 Areas requiring costly structures, highly
developed expensive areas, marshes and low
lying lands subject to flooding, hilly terrain
where there is a possibility of land slides, etc.

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 Factors Controlling Highway Alignment
(cont.)
 Traffic
The alignment should suit the traffic requirements
Present and future travel patterns should be observed &
forecasted
Traffic “Desire line” should be drawn showing path of
traffic flow
 Geometric Constraints
Design factors such as max. gradient, minimum radius of
curve, minimum available sight distance, maximum
allowable super-elevation, etc. should be within the limits of
allowable design values which are governed by the expected
traffic speed
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Factors Controlling Highway Alignment (cont.)
 Economy
 Total transportation cost including initial construction cost,
maintenance cost, and operation cost
 Example :
 Deep cuttings, high embankments, no of bridges that need to
be constructed, etc. increases the initial cost of construction.
 Other considerations
 Drainage considerations
 Hydrological factors
 Political considerations
 Monotony

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 Special considerations on Hilly Roads
 Slope Stability
a common problem in hill roads is land slide. Special care
should be taken to choose the side that is more stable
 Drainage
Numerous hill-side drains to adequately drain the water
across the road should be provided
But, attempts should be made to align the road where the
number of cross-drainage structures are minimized
 Geometry
Different standards of grades, curves, sight distances, speeds
and other related features are followed in hill roads
 Resisting Length
The resisting length should be kept as low as possible. Thus,
the ineffective rise and excessive fall should be kept minimum

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Route Location Surveys
 In order to select the best road corridor, the
following engineering surveys are usually carried
out:

 Reconnaissance Surveys

 Preliminary Surveys

 Detailed (Location) Surveys

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 Reconnaissance Surveys
 1st phase of Reconnaissance: Desk Study
 Involves an examination of a relatively large area between
terminal points for the purpose of determining a broad
corridors through which a road alignment may pass
 Usually such survey is made by the use of available maps
and Aerial Photographs (stereoscopy)

 Probable Alignment is identified on the map by:

 Avoiding valleys, ponds, etc.;
 Avoiding river bends where bridges should not be located;
 Keeping in view of geometric standards (e.g. avoiding steep
topographies, etc)

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 Reconnaissance Surveys
 2nd phase of Reconnaissance: Field Study
 Involves inspection of each band (identified during the desk study) to determine
the most feasible route based on some basic criteria
 A survey party inspects a fairly broad stretch of land along the proposed routes
identified on the map during the 1st phase and collects all relevant details not
available on the map
 Some of the details include:
 valley, ponds, lakes, marshy land, ridge, hills, permanent structures, & other
obstructions;
 gradient, length of gradient, and radius of curves;
 number & types of cross-drainage structures, and maximum flood level;
 soil types from field identification;
 sources of construction materials, water and location stone quarries;
 geological formation, type of rock, depth of strata, seepage flow, etc to
identify stable sides of a hill
 A rapid field study of the area, especially, when it is vast and the terrain is
difficult may be done by aerial survey 17
Highway Eng. I , Route Selection
 General criteria used in route selection
 The relative length of the alternatives was considered. mostly
the shortest is selected
 The average and mean gradient was computed for each route.
Normally the least severe grade alternative is preferred.
However, minimum grade mostly give larger length.
 Route more closely follow an existing road or track are
preferred.
 Routes face least severe terrain type was considered.
 Route remain longer on the crest of the terrain minimize
drainage structure.
 Alignment minimizes for land acquisition and demolition of
buildings and houses are preferred.
 Trial number of cross drainage structures is considered.
 Routes result in least environmental disturbance is preferred.
 Route with least overall project cost are preferred.
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After evaluating the alternative routes proposed,

one or more routes will be recommended.

If more than one routes passed the reconnaissance

survey detail study is made to choose one best

route in the preliminary survey.

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 Preliminary Surveys
Consists of running an accurate traverse line along
the routes already recommended as a result of
reconnaissance survey in order to obtain sufficient
data for final location
Objectives
Survey and collect necessary data (topography,
drainage, soil, etc.) on alternate alignments
To estimate quantity of earthwork, material, … of
different alternatives
Compare alternate alignments
Finalize the best alignment from all considerations

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Preliminary Survey
 The preliminary survey may be carried out by one
of the following two methods:
 Modern: Aerial Survey – using photo
interpretation techniques, information on
topography, soil, geology, etc. can be obtained
 Conventional: a survey part carries out surveys
using the require field equipment taking
measurements, collecting topographical and other
data and carrying out soil survey
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Conventional Method

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 Final Location Survey
Purpose
To fix the centre line of the selected alignment and
collect additional data for the design and
preparation of working drawings.
If extensive data is collected earlier the survey
work here might be limited.

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 Tasks during Final Location Survey

1. Pegging the centre line: usually done at stations

established at 30m intervals with reference to
preliminary traverse/ base line (if used earlier)
or a control survey (if aerial survey was used).
2. Centre-line Levelling: at the stations and at
intermediate points between stations where
there is a significant change in the slope to
obtain the representative profile of the ground

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 Tasks (cont.)
3. Cross-section Levelling: at each station and at
points with significant change in ground
slope
4. Intersecting Roads: the directions of the centre
line of all intersecting roads, profiles, and
cross-sections for some distance on both sides
5. Ditches and Streams: horizontal alignment,
profile, and cross section levelling of the
banks of the stream/river

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 Steps in route location
Know the termini points of the scheme.
From the study of a map of the area, identify and
locate:
 National parks
Any ancient relics, castles and the likes
Existence of monasteries
Mining sites
Existing transport facilities
Other public facilities (electricity, water)
Location of construction materials
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 Steps in route location (cont…)
Conduct preliminary and reconnaissance surveys and collect
information on pertinent details of topography, climate, soil,
vegetation, and any other factors.
Based on the information collected in the previous two steps select
a corridor.
Identify a number of possible centerlines within the corridor.
Make a preliminary design for the possible alternative alignments
and plot on a base map.
Examine each of the alternative alignment with respect to grades,
volume of earthwork, drainage, crossing structures, etc to select the
best alternative route.
Make final design and location of the selected best alternative route.

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 Drawings & Reports
The data, after the necessary investigation and final
location survey, is sent to the design office to be used for
geometric design, pavement design, and design of drainage and
other structures, preparation of drawings, reports, and
specifications
A complete sets of drawings for a road design includes:
Site plan of proposed alignment
Detailed Plan & Profile
Cross-sections for Earth work
Typical Roadway sections at selected locations (e.g. junctions)
A mass-haul diagram
Construction details of structures like bridges, culverts, ….

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