6 ROUTE ASSESSMENT

Two road alignments, Options 1 and 2, have been proposed, both having the same
origin and destination, as shown in Figure 1.1.

The aim of the proposed road is to alleviate traffic along Dune Road / Angler’s Road,
improve opportunities and safety for vulnerable pedestrians crossing along these
roads and streamline RBM operations by shortening the travel distance for staff and
operational vehicles to and from the Alton Bagging Plant. The key advantages and
disadvantages in light of the above and various key factors are discussed hereafter
and summarised in Figures 6.1 and 6.2.

6.1 Travel Distance and Time

The length of the route currently travelled between the RBM site and the centre of
Richard’s Bay Central Business District (CBD) is approximately 19.5km. The travel
distances for Options 1 and 2 will be approximately 11.2km and 11.9km respectively.
The travel distances and percentage reductions are shown in Table 6.1 below.

Table 6.1: Travel distance from RBM to Alton Bagging Plant

Route to Bagging Plant Distance (km) Percentage Reduction
Existing Route 19.5 -
Option 1 11.2 42.6%
Option 2 11.9 39%

The travel time is affected by specific road conditions and the environments abutting
the roads. The existing route traverses through rural, informal residential areas with a
high number of accesses. Speed humps, raised and level pedestrian crossings are
frequent along the existing route due to the presence of various public amenities, as
shown in Figure 6.3. These are all factors contributing to a reduction in mobility
along Dune Road, resulting in longer travel times.

Figure 6.3: Speed hump located along Dune Road

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 Approximately half of the length of the new route will traverse through plantations, and
thereafter residential areas with no direct access but several signalised intersections
in the built-up areas. The remainder of the route goes through the Richard’s Bay
CBD area to the Alton industrial area. Although fewer disruptions to traffic flow exist
along the proposed route, during peak hour traffic, RBM operations are expected to
be adversely affected by the high traffic volumes in the residential and CBD areas
should RBM use the new road to transport its products to Alton Bagging Plant.
Therefore, the traffic in these areas may serve as a bottle-neck to further
development.

The plantation area, closer to Birdswood, is earmarked for the northern expansion of
Richard’s Bay including the Sappi Housing Development and the expansion of
Richard’s Bay Airport, as shown in Figures 1.2 and 1.3. Therefore, the possibility of
much higher traffic volumes in future should be taken into consideration as more of
the public make use of the road.

It is important to note that Dune Road is a private road which was built and is
maintained by RBM and that all the developments along it after the Meer En See area
are informal settlements. It is possible that informal settlements may also develop
along the ECA, resulting in similar mobility constraints, if preventative measures are
not taken.

6.2 Safety

With regard to safety, Dune Road appears to meet all the necessary geometric
requirements, has traffic calming measures, pedestrian crossings, makes provision
for public transport, barricading and has light posts for visibility at night. However, the
accident history along Dune Road indicates that safety is a major concern.

According to the Richard’s Bay Minerals, Transportation Risk Assessment: Road

Network, 30 August 2011 completed by Hatch, a high number of incidents have
occurred during the period of 2006 to 2011 along the road, resulting in 63 injuries and
12 fatalities. This could be related to the high number of accesses and extensive
pedestrian activity along the road. The proposed ECA extension is not expected to
have any direct access along it, but in future may have residential streets intersecting
with it, of which most would likely be signalised and is therefore expected to have
fewer vehicle conflicts. With more RBM vehicles using the ECA extension, hence
reducing the number of vehicles along Dune Road, the number of incidents along
Dune Road is expected to decrease.

Speed surveys were conducted along Dune Road and the RBM Access Road and the
following results were obtained, as shown in Table 6.2. The speed limits along both
these roads are 60km/h.

Table 6.2: Speed Survey Results

Percentage
85th Percentile Speed Average Speed
Road Exceeding
(km/h) (km/h)
Speed Limit
Dune Road 59.4 54 0%
RBM Access
59.4 56 14.4%
Road

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 Motorists appear to adhere to the speed limit along Dune Road; however according to
the speed survey 14.4% of motorists exceed the speed limit along the RBM Access
Road which may be due to fewer speed reducing features along the road. It is very
likely that speeding will occur along the extension of the ECA, particularly before any
residential developments occur along the road.

6.3 Traffic Composition

The existing daily traffic volumes entering and exiting the RBM area of operations was
measured for the period of a week and the results are shown in Figure 6.3.

Figure 6.4: Daily Traffic Volumes along Dune Road

29 August to 4 September 2012
7000

6000

5000
Daily Traffic Volumes

4000 Light

3000
Heavy
2000

1000
Total
0
2012/08/29

2012/08/30

2012/08/31

2012/09/01

2012/09/02

2012/09/03

2012/09/04

Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Monday Tuesday

The average daily traffic over a weekly period was found to be approximately 5704
veh/day. The daily traffic appears to peak towards Friday and expectedly decrease
over the weekend period. The volume of heavy vehicles is more consistent
throughout the week. The percentage modal split of various vehicle classes for the
week period is indicated below, in Figure 6.4.

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 Figure 6.5: Classification of Traffic
29 August to 4 September 2012

9%
3%
Motorcycle, car, bakkie and
1% minibus

2 axle bus, single unit truck

3 to 4 axle bus or truck

5 or more axle bus or truck

87%

Eighty seven percent of vehicles travelling through the RBM area of operations
consist of light vehicles, with 13% consisting of various types of heavy vehicles.

The traffic composition will change along the proposed extension as all heavy vehicle
trips along Dune Road to the RBM site are expected to relocate to the proposed
extension, thus resulting in a higher percentage of heavy vehicles of 14%.

6.4 Road Pavement Design

In order to complete the road pavement design, factors such as the road category,
analysis period, structural design period and equivalent standard axle loads, to name
a few, must be determined. Although the factors mentioned, including many others,
can only be determined with some certainty once the actual road design commences,
this section serves to help inform the design.

6.4.1 Road Category

The road category is generally based on the purpose of the road and hence quality of
the road geometric and structural standards, according to the Committee of Land
Transport Officials (COLTO, TRH4, 1996), where highest to lowest quality ranges
between A to D. The ECA extension will serve as an important interurban collector,
where a high level of service will be expected and can therefore be considered to be
a Category B road.

6.4.2 Analysis and Structural Design Period

The selection of the analysis period depends on how sure one can be that the road
alignment and traffic situation will not vary significantly (COLTO, TRH4, 1996). The
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 greater the certainty, the longer the analysis period should be and vice versa. For
Category B the analysis period ranges between 15 to 30 years.

Once the road alignment is selected for the ECA extension it is not expected to
change thereafter. However, numerous junctions are expected to develop along the
road as the Richard’s Bay area expands northward. In light of the expansion
northward, the traffic situation is expected to vary significantly. Due to this
uncertainty, it is recommended by COLTO (TRH4) that a shorter analysis period of 25
years can be selected.

The structural design period can be defined as the length of time the road pavement
remains above its terminal riding quality (before ceasing to fulfil its function
effectively). It is highly dependent on the life cycle strategy of the road, which in turn
depends on the desired quality, quantity and availability of resources, COLTO
(TRH4). Therefore, no recommendation can be made in this regard until the
pavement design commences. Typically the structural design period for a Category B
road would be between 15 and 25 years. Therefore, for the ECA extension a
structural design period of 20 years has been assumed.

6.4.3 Design Traffic and Axle Loading

In order to design a road pavement that will structurally withstand the traffic loading
expected along the road, the cumulative damaging effect of individual axle loads of all
vehicles using the road over its structural design period is converted to the number of
equivalent 80kN single-axle loads (ESAs) or E80s (COLTO, TRH4).

The number of vehicles per day per heaviest trafficked lane (v.p.d/lane) or direction
(v.p.d/direction) is converted into ESAs or E80s by multiplying it to the following:

· Percentage heavy vehicles that would use the road (26%)

· E80 loading factor based on how fully laden the heavy vehicles are expected to be
(>70% fully laden, therefore a factor of 2 is used)
· A traffic growth factor (fy) based on the following:
o Structural design period, (20 years)
o Annual growth rate percentage for road type (Although an assumption of 5%
annual growth for the Richard’s Bay area and 1% for RBM traffic was made,
for a Category B road a typical growth rate used would be 4%)

From the above calculation the required bearing capacity is determined and hence an
appropriate pavement class can be chosen, as shown in Table 6.3. An ES30
pavement is selected as it is typically used for roads with a very high volume of traffic
and many fully laden heavy vehicles.

Table 6.3: Equivalent Standard Axles (E80 or ESA) Calculation

v.p.d / direction (most highly trafficked lane) 3 348
Percentage heavy vehicles 14%
E80 per heavy vehicle 2
Growth Factor (fy) 11 303
Bearing capacity needed E80 or ESA 10.82x106 E80
Selected pavement class ES30
As shown in COLTO, TRH14 Table 4, page 19

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6.5 Alignment Recommendation

Based on the purpose of the extension and the possible expansion of Richard’s Bay
northward, Option 1 is considered the more appropriate alignment. This alignment
will allow for a more direct route between Richard’s Bay and the RBM Final Products
Site, resulting in economic and environmental efficiency. However, road geometric
design standards and other inputs should ultimately determine the most suitable
alignment as there is not a significant benefit of Option 1 over Option 2 based on
transport planning inputs.

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7 CONCLUSIONS

The following can therefore be concluded:

· The ECA has recently been extended to John Ross Parkway (R34) and
comprises a four-lane divided road

· The NCA has recently been redesigned to a four lane divided road, between
Gulden Gracht and Via Davallia. Implementation is, however, uncertain due to
financial constraints

· Most of the major intersections within the existing Richard’s Bay road network
operates acceptably during both the AM and PM peak hours ranging between
intersection LOS A and C

· However, the John Ross Parkway (R34) / Hibberd Drive intersection currently
operates poorly with the Hibberd Drive approach experiencing LOS F during both
the AM and PM peak hours

· The John Ross Parkway (R34) / Hibberd Drive intersection currently meets the
SARTSM warrants for signalisation and the minimum spacing requirements for
signalisation according to COLTO (RAM, 2005)

· If the John Ross Parkway (R34) / Hibberd Drive intersection were signalised, as
shown below, under the current conditions it would operate well at intersection
LOS B and A during the AM and PM peak hours respectively

· It is expected that approximately 66% of the staff and all heavy vehicles currently
at the eastern end of Dune Road will reroute to the extension of the ECA

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 · Most of the major intersections will continue to operate acceptably if the ECA
were to be extended in 2012 with intersection LOS ranging between B and C,
with the exception of the John Ross Parkway / Hibberd Drive intersection

· If the John Ross Parkway (R34) / Hibberd Drive intersection were to be upgraded
with the ECA extended under 2012 conditions, it would operate at intersection
LOS B during both the AM and PM peak hours

· The operation of many of the intersections will deteriorate in the year 2017 due to
the increased traffic volumes throughout the Richard’s Bay area. However, most
of the major intersections will continue to operate acceptably with LOS ranging
between B and D, with the exception of the John Ross Parkway / Hibberd Drive
intersection

· If the John Ross Parkway (R34) / Hibberd Drive intersection were to be upgraded
with the ECA extended under the 2017 conditions, it would continue to operate at
intersection LOS B during the AM and PM peak hours

· The travel distance between the RBM Final Products Site and the Richard’s Bay
CBD for alignment Options 1 and 2 will decrease by 42.6% and 39% respectively

· Travel time on the existing route along Dune Road is longer than the proposed
route due to more speed reducing features, such as speed humps, pedestrian
crossings and the distance covered

· RBM operations are expected to be delayed along the new route during the AM
and PM peak hours as the new route traverses the busier Richard’s Bay CBD
area

· The plantation areas north of Richard’s Bay are earmarked for development,
including the Sappi Housing Development

· Dune Road has a high accident rate, which may be related to the high number of
pedestrians along the road. It is expected that the extension of the ECA will
reduce the number of incidents along Dune Road by reducing traffic volumes and
heavy vehicles

· No speeding was observed along Dune Road, however, 14.4% of vehicles

observed along the RBM access road exceeded the speed limit

· The current modal split along Dune Road is 87% light vehicles and 13% heavy
vehicles

· The modal split will differ along the extension of the ECA, due to a higher
presence of heavy vehicles.

· Due to the uncertainty of the expected traffic volumes along the extension of the
ECA in the future, in light of the possible expansion of Richard’s Bay northward,
the road is considered to be Category B

· The equivalent axle-load expected for the road is 10.82x106 E80s and therefore
the minimum pavement class should be ES30

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8 RECOMMENDATIONS

It is therefore recommended that:

· The ECA / Nkoninga intersection have the following geometry:

The above intersection geometry is required due to the road extension and is
therefore the responsibility of RBM.

· The John Ross Parkway / Hibberd Drive intersection be signalised as follows. It

should be noted, however, that the requirement to signalise this intersection is
due to current traffic conditions and not as a result of the introduction of the new
ECA extension.

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 · The pavement class used for the ECA extension is designed for a minimum
bearing capacity of 10.82x106 E80s and a pavement class of at least ES30.

· The ECA extension follow alignment option 1 as it is more economically and

environmentally efficient. However, established road geometric design standards
and other environmental investigations should ultimately determine the most
suitable alignment.

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9 REFERENCES

1. Department of Transport. Manual for Traffic Impact Studies. July 1995

2. City of uMhlathuze: Integrated Development Plan Review 2009/2010. June 2009

3. City of uMhlathuze: Revision of Spatial Development Framework. 11 February

2007

4. Mbonambi Local Municipality: Integrated Development Plan 2009/2010. June 2009

5. Richard’s Bay Minerals: Transport Risk Assessment, Environmental Context. 20

August 2011

6. Richard’s Bay Minerals: Transport Risk Assessment, Road Network. 20 August

2011

7. Southern African Development Community. Road Traffic Signs Manual. 3rd Ed.
Digitised Version. May 2012

8. Committee for Land Transport Officials (COLTO). National Guidelines for Road
Access Management in South Africa (RAM). 25 October 2005

9. Committee for Land Transport Officials (COLTO). Structural Design of Flexible

Pavements for Interurban and Rural Roads. Draft TRH4. Revised 2006

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