CROSS SECTIONAL ELEMENTS

BY
Vinay Kumar B M

INTRODUCTION
The term cross section is used to define the

configuration of a proposed roadway at right

angles to the centerline.
Typical sections show the width, thickness and

descriptions of the pavement section, as well as

the geometrics of the graded roadbed, side
ditches, and side slopes.
The

features of the cross-section of the

pavement influences the life of the pavement as
well as the riding comfort and safety.

Pavement surface
characteristics
PSC depends upon the pavement
type.
Pavement type is decided based upon :
availability of raw materials & funds
volume and composition of traffic
subgrade and climatic conditions
construction facilities and
Cost considerations

The important surface characteristics of pavement

are:
1. Friction or Skid resistance.
2. Unevenness.
3. Light reflecting characteristics.
4. Drainage of surface water

Friction
Friction between the wheel and the pavement

surface is a crucial factor in the design of

horizontal curves and the safe operating speed.
Further,

it also affect the acceleration and

deceleration ability of vehicles.

Lack of adequate friction can cause skidding or

slipping of vehicles.

Skidding

happens when the path traveled along the

road surface is more than the circumferential
movement of the wheels due to friction.
Slip occurs when the wheel revolves more than the
corresponding longitudinal movement along the road.

Various factors that affect friction

are:

Type of the pavement (like bituminous, concrete,

or gravel).

Macro-texture of pavement surface.

Condition of the pavement (dry or wet, hot or cold,

etc).

Condition of the tyre (new or old).

Speed and load of the vehicle.

Extent of brake application or brake efficiency.

coefficient of friction
The frictional force that develops between the wheel

and the pavement, is the load acting multiplied by a

factor called the coefficient of friction and denoted as
f.
IRC suggests the coefficient of longitudinal friction as

0 .35-0.4 depending on the speed and coefficient of

lateral friction as 0.15.

Unevenness
It is always desirable to have an even surface, but

it is seldom possible to have such a one.

Unevenness affect the vehicle operating cost,

speed, riding comfort, safety, fuel consumption

and wear and tear of tyres.
The pavement surface condition is commonly

measured by using an equipment called "bump

integrator.
Unevenness index is a measure of unevenness

which is the cumulative measure of vertical

undulations of the pavement surface recorded per
unit horizontal length of the road.

 An unevenness index value less than 1500 mm/km is

considered as good,
A value less than 2500 mm/km is satisfactory up to

speed of 100 kmph and

values greater than 3200 mm/km is considered as

uncomfortable even for 55 kmph.

Causes of unevenness
Improper compaction of fill, subgrade & pavement

layer.
Un-scientific construction practices.
Use of inferior pavement materials
Improper surface & sub-surface drainage.
Use of improper construction machinery
Poor maintenance practices

Light reflection
It is necessary that the road surface should be

visible at night and reflection of light is the factor

that has to be considered.
White roads have good visibility at night, but

caused glare during day time.

Black roads has no glare during day, but has poor

visibility at night

Concrete roads has better visibility and less glare

D rainage
The

pavement surface should be absolutely

impermeable to prevent seepage of water into the
pavement layers.

Further,

both the geometry and texture of

pavement surface should help in draining out the
water from the surface in less time.

Camber
Camber or cant is the cross slope provided
to raise middle of the road surface in the
transverse direction to drain of rain water from
road surface.

Objectives
Surface protection especially for gravel and

bituminous roads

Sub-grade protection by proper drainage

Quick drying of pavement which in turn
increases safety

Camber is measured in 1 in n or n% (Eg. 1 in 50

or 2%) and the value depends on the type of

pavement surface.

The required type of camber of a

pavement depends upon:
1. Type of pavement surface
2. The amount of rainfall

Too steep slope is undesirable as it

will erode the surface.

Types of camber
Parabolic
Straight line camber
Combination of them

Parabolic camber

Profile is flat at middle and steeper at edges,

which is preferred by fast moving vehicle

Straight line camber

This type of camber is provided for the cement

concrete pavements

Combination of Two

Parabolic at central portion and straight line

camber at edge

The values suggested by IRC for various

categories of pavement is given in Table
SI.
NO

TYPE OF ROAD
SURFACE

RANGE OF CAMBER
HEAVY

LIGHT

Concrete/High type
Bituminous surface

1 in 50(2%)

1 in 60(1.7%)

Thin Bituminous
surface

1 in 40(2.5%)

1 in 50(2%)

WBM and Gravel

Pavement

1 in 33(3%)

1 in 40(2.5%)

Earthen

1 in 25(4%)

1 in 33(3%)

Width of carriage way

Width of the carriage way or the width of the

pavement depends on the width of the traffic lane

and number of lanes.
Width of a traffic lane depends on the width of the

vehicle and the clearance.

The maximum permissible width of a vehicle is

2.44 and the desirable side clearance for single

lane traffic is 0.68 m.
This require minimum of lane width of 3.75 m for a

single lane road.

However, the side clearance required is about 0.53
m, on either side and 1.06 m in the center.

Lane w idth for single and tw o lane

roads

IRC Specification for carriage way width

Kerbs
Kerbs indicate the boundary between the
carriage way and the shoulder or footpaths.
Different types of kerbs are:
1. Low or mountable kerbs
2. Semi-barrier type kerbs
3. Barrier type kerbs
4. Submerged kerbs

Low or mountable kerbs

encourage the traffic to remain in the through

traffic lanes and also allow the driver to enter the

shoulder area with little difficulty.
The height of this kerb is about 10 cm above the

pavement edge with a slope which allows the

vehicle to climb easily.

Semi-barrier type kerbs

When the pedestrian traffic is high, these kerbs are

provided.
Their height is 15cm above the pavement edge.
This

type of kerb prevents encroachment of

parking vehicles, but at acute emergency it is
possible to drive over this kerb with some difficulty.

Barrier type kerbs

They are designed to discourage vehicles from

leaving the pavement.

They are provided when there is considerable

amount of pedestrian traffic.

They are placed at a height of 20 cm above the

pavement edge.

Submerged kerbs

They are used in rural roads.

The kerbs are provided at pavement edges

between the pavement edge and shoulders.

They provide lateral confinement and stability to

the pavement.

Road margins

The

portion of the road beyond the

carriageway and on the roadway can be
generally called road margin.

Various elements that form the road

margins
Shoulders-4.6m,mini-2.5
Parking lanes-3m
Bus-bays
Service roads
Cycle track-2m
Footpath-1.5m

Width of formation
Width of formation or roadway width is the

sum of the widths of pavements or carriage

way including separators and shoulders.
The values suggested by IRC are given in Table

Right of way
Right of way (ROW) or land width is the width of

land acquired for the road, along its alignment.

It should be adequate to accommodate all the

cross-sectional elements of the highway and may

reasonably provide for future development.
To prevent ribbon development along highways,

control lines and building lines may be provided.

Factors influencing right of way

Width of formation

Height of embankment or depth of cutting

Side slopes of embankment or cutting

Drainage system and their size which depends

on rainfall, topography etc.
Sight distance considerations

Reserve land for future widening

The normal ROW requirements for built up

and open areas as specified by IRC is
given in Table

Medians
Medians are commonly used on major urban

arterial to separate opposing traffic.

It is generally recognized that crashes and

delays will be reduced if the median is installed.

However, owners of businesses abutting the

highway commonly believe that they will suffer a

loss in business

Advantages of Medians
Primary Advantages
Operational Safety
Increased Capacity

Other Advantages
Smoothes and enhances the highway traffic flow
Decreases conflicts by providing a positive separation
of opposing lanes of traffic
Permits the regulation of traffic, through the prohibition
of certain movements
Controls the angles of conflict more adequately
Gives better indication to motorists of the proper use of
travel lanes and intersections

Design of Road humps

Roads

of different categories & under different

situation are designed for designated design speed.

Number of engineering measures are available such

as posting of mandatory speed limit signs, road

markings of various types, use of flashing beacons to
alert drivers etc.
There may be a cases, like residential streets in urban

areas, where certain physical constraints is necessary

to control speed of vehicles.
In this regard, three types of devices , namely, speed

breakers, rumble strips and width restrictions have

been used successfully

Ideal Requirements of Road hump

1. There should be no damage to vehicles nor

excessive
discomfort
passengers.

to

the

drivers

&

2. The hump should not give rise to excessive

noise or cause harmful vibrations.

Circumstances to provide road hump

1. T-intersections of minor roads with rural trunk

highways
2. Intersections of minor roads with major roads.
3. Selected

local streets
schools, colleges etc

residential

areas

Design

Design

Humps at Mid-block s/c

Humps at T-Intersections

Humps at sharp curves