Module E

Geometric Design of Roads-III

Prof. Bhargab Maitra

Department of Civil Engineering

Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur
India

IIT Kharagpur | Transportation Engineering

Contents
• Topography
• Grade Compensation
• Critical Length of Grade
• Summit Curve
• Valley Curve
• Coordination of Horizontal and Vertical Allignments

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 General

• Natural ground may have slopes/undulations of various magnitudes

• Vertical alignment should provide for a smooth profile consistent with the
general topography

• Vertical alignment includes different grades and vertical curves

• Influencing factors: vehicle speed, sight distance, comfortable acceleration/

deceleration, etc.

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 Topography
IRC
Terrain classification % cross slope
• Plain upto 10
• Rolling 10 to 25
• Mountainous 25 to 60
• Steep terrain > 60
AASTHO
• Level
• Rolling
• Mountainous
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 Gradient
Different Categories of Gradient (IRC)

• Ruling Gradient: Generally used in design (called design gradient)

 Type of terrain
 Length of grade
 Speed
 Pulling power of vehicles
 Presence of horizontal curves
 Mixed traffic

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 Gradient
• Limiting Gradient: Steeper than ruling gradient

 Topography
 Cost

 Length of continuous grade line steeper than ruling value should be

limited
• Exceptional Gradient: Steeper than limiting gradient

 Short stretches and unavoidable situation

 Short stretches not exceeding about 100 m at a stretch

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 Gradient

Gradients for Roads in Different Terrains (IRC):

Limiting Exceptional
Terrain Rulling gradient
gradient gradient

Plain and Rolling 3.3% 5% 6.70%

Mountainous terrain 5% 6% 7%

Steep terrain 6% 7% 8%

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Gradient

Minimum Gradient for Drainage: A certain longitudinal slope is desirable

to drain the water along the side drain (if topography favors)

 Side drains gradient 1 in 300 means 3.3 m deepening of

downstream end per km length of road – is it practical?

 Gradient depends on rainfall, runoff, type of soil, topography, etc.

 Gradient may vary from 1 in 500 (concrete drains) to 1 in 100

(kutcha drain)

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 Grade Compensation (IRC)
• When there is a horizontal curve in addition to gradient there will be more
resistance due to both gradient and curve (hilly terrain)

• Reduction in gradient in horizontal curve is done to keep the total resistance

T
within acceptable limit ɸ Tcosɸ

30  R
• Grade compensation 
R
• Maximum value of grade compensation is 75/R where R is the radius of circular
curve in meter

• Grade compensation is not necessary for grade less than 4 %

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 Grade Compensation (IRC)
Example problem:
In a hill road section, ruling gradient = 6% and radius of horizontal curve = 65 m.
Calculate compensated grade.

Answer:
30  R 30  65
Grade compensation    1.46%
R 65
Maximum limit of Grade compensation=75/R =75/65 = 1.15%
Compensated grade = 6.0-1.15 = 4.85 %

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 Vertical Curves

• To effect gradual changes between tangent grades

• Should be simple in application and should result in a design that is safe and
comfortable in operation, pleasing in appearance and adequate for drainage
• Two types of vertical curves:
 Summit curves
 Valley curves

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 Summit Curves
• Summit curves/ crest curves are convex upwards
• Serve as a gradual transition from one gradient to another without
discomfort to riders

VPI

Type-I Type-II

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 Summit Curves

• Basis for design i.e. minimum length: Sight distance

• Generally no problem of discomfort: Centrifugal force and gravity forces are

acting in opposite directions. A part of the pressure on the tyre and spring of
the vehicle is relieved

• Two types of sight distance are considered for design purpose: SSD and
OSD/PSD

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 Summit Curves

Shape of Summit curves

• Circular Summit curves are ideal as the sight distance available throughout
the length is constant

• For small deviation angle simple parabola is congruent with a circular curve

• Arithmetic calculations and ordinates computation are easy for simple

parabola- so general practice is to provide simple parabola as summit curve

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 Summit Curves
Length of Summit curves (IRC approach)
SSD consideration
Case-I: When L > SSD
NS 2
L
( 2 H  2h ) 2 N=n1-n2
PVI N
H M h

H = Height of driver’s eye above road level = 1.2m

h = Height of object = 0.15m
M= Ordinate to summit curve from PVI = NL/8

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 Summit Curves
NS 2
L
4.4
Case-II: When L < SSD

( 2 H  2h ) 2
L  2S 
N

4.4
L  2S 
N

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 Summit Curves
OSD consideration
Case-I: When L > OSD
NS 2
L N=n1-n2
( 2 H  2h ) 2

H h

H = Height of driver’s eye above road level = 1.2m

h = Height of object = 1.2m
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 Summit Curves
NS 2
L
9.6
Case-II: When L < OSD

( 2 H  2h ) 2
L  2S 
N
9.6
L  2S 
N

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 Summit Curves
Minimum length of Vertical Curve:
• When the deviation angle is small, the length of summit curve generally
works out less than sight distance

• In case of very small deviation angles, length required sometimes works out
as negative indicating that there is no problem of sight distance

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 Summit Curves
The minimum lengths of vertical curve for different speeds and for the maximum
grade change values which theoretically do not require vertical curves
Maximum grade change
Design Speed Minimum length of
not requiring a vertical
(km/hr) vertical curve (m)
curve
35 1.5 15
40 1.2 20
50 1.0 30
65 0.8 40
80 0.6 50
100 0.5 60

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 Summit Curves
Derivation for Length of Summit Curves
E
When L > OSD
n1L/2

D N=n1+ n2 F

n1 n2
B n2L/2
y H H
P G Q C
J
A M
x
L
Considering A as origin, measure x horizontally and take y as vertical
intercept between curve and grade line ADE. Since summit curves are long
and flat length of ABC = horizontal projection AM
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Summit Curves
E

n1L/2

D N=n1+ n2 F

n1 n2
B n2L/2
y H H
P G Q C
J
A M
x
L

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Summit Curves
E

n1L/2

D N=n1+ n2 F

n1 n2
B n2L/2
y H H
P G Q C
J
A M
x
L

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 Valley Curves

N
VPI
Type-I Type-II

• Valley curves/ sag curves are concave upwards

• Centrifugal force and gravity forces are acting in same direction – creating
discomfort
• Night driving- Headlight sight distance > SSD
• Generally Headlight Sight distance criterion governs

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 Valley Curves
Length of Valley curves (IRC approach)

Stanα
h1 h1

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Valley Curves

S
L

h1 Stanα
N h1
L/2 S-L/2

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Valley Curves
• Comfort Criteria
 The valley curve is made fully transitional by providing two similar
transition curves of equal length

 The transitional curve is set out by a cubic parabola y = bx3

 The length of valley curve should be designed based on the rate of

change of centrifugal acceleration, which will ensure comfort to
riders

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Valley Curves
• Comfort Criteria L

Ls = Length of spiral or cubic L/2= Ls

parabola= L/2, where L= total length
of valley curve
N

 Radial acceleration = v2/R

 Radial acceleration changes from zero to v2/R over
the length Ls during time t = Ls/v
 Rate of change of radial acceleration C = (v3/LsR)
 Length Ls = v3/CR
 For cubic parabola, the value of R for length Ls is Ls/N

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Valley Curves

3 3
v Nv
Ls  xN , Ls 
2

CL s C
3 3
Nv 1/ 2 Nv 1/ 2
Ls  [ ] , L  2 Ls  2[ ]
C C

The recommended value for C is 0.6 m/ s3

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Vehicle Operating Characteristics on Grades (AASHTO)
• Passengers cars

 All passenger cars can readily negotiate grades up to 4 to 5 %

without much reduction in speed

• Trucks
 The effect of grade on speed is more pronounced in case of trucks
than on passenger cars

 Maximum speed that can be maintained by truck depends on

length and steepness of grade and the truck’s weight/power ratio

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 Vehicle Operating Characteristics on Grades (AASHTO)

Speed-Distance Curves for a Typical Heavy Truck (85 Speed-Distance Curves for Acceleration of a Typical Heavy
kg/kW) for Deceleration on Upgrades Truck (85kg/kW) on Upgrades and Downgrades

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Vehicle Operating Characteristics on Grades (AASHTO)
• Recreational Vehicles

 This consideration is not critical except on designated recreational

routes

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 Control Grades for Design (AASTHO)
• Maximum Grade:

 About 5 % for design speed of 110 km/h

 In the range of 7-12% (depending on terrain) for design speed of 50 km/h

 For design speeds from 60 to 100 km/h: between the above extremes

 Provide flatter grades keeping maximum grades for extreme cases

 For short stretches less than 150 m and for one-way downgrades, the
maximum grade may be about 1% steeper than other locations

 For low-volume highways in rural areas, the maximum grade may be 2 %

steeper

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 Control Grades for Design (AASTHO)
• Minimum Grade:
 With curbed highways, minimum longitudinal grade of about 0.3 to 0.5%
(depending on type of pavement) should be provided to facilitate surface
drainage

 Particular attention should be given to the design of storm water inlets

and their spacing to keep the spread of water on the traveled way within
tolerable limits

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Control Grades for Design (AASTHO)
• Pedestrian Considerations:
 The grade of the roadway becomes the cross slope in the crosswalk
at pedestrian crossings

 Designers should consider such limitations when establishing the

grade of streets with pedestrian crosswalks, whether those
crosswalks are marked or unmarked

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Critical Lengths of Grade for Design (AASTHO)
• Maximum grades itself is not a complete design control

• Length of a particular grade should also be considered for desirable

vehicle operation

• Critical length of grade is the maximum length of a designated

upgrade on which a loaded truck can operate without an
unreasonable reduction in speed

• To maintain desired freedom of operation on grades longer than

critical, design adjustment such as changes in location to reduce
grades or addition of extra lanes should be considered

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Critical Lengths of Grade for Design (AASTHO)
To establish design values for critical length of grade, several
assumptions are required
• Design vehicle: Size and power of representative truck or truck
combination to be used as design vehicle along with gradeability
data (weight/power ratio-typical value is 120 kg/kW)

• Speed at entrance: Average running speed may be used to

approximate the speed of vehicles beginning an uphill climb

• Minimum speed :It should be a function of design speed and traffic

volume to capacity ratio

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Critical Lengths of Grade for Design (AASTHO)
• Studies show that more a
vehicle deviates from the
average speed on the highway,
the greater its chance of
involvement in crash

Crash Involvement Rate of Trucks for which Running

Speeds are reduced below Average Running Speed
of all Traffic

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Critical Lengths of Grade for Design (AASTHO)

• A common basis for determining critical length is based on a

reduction in speed of trucks below the average running speed

• Traditionally, a reduction in truck speed of 25 km/h below the average

running speed of all traffic has been used as a basis for obtaining
critical length

• However, the crash involvement rate increases significantly if the

speed reduction is more than 15 km/h (2.4 times greater if speed
reduction is 25 km/h instead of 15 km/h)

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 Critical Lengths of Grade for Design (AASTHO)
• It is recommended that 15 km/hr reduction
criterion be used as the general guide for
determining critical lengths of grade

• When approach is on upgrade, speed reduction

will occur over shorter lengths of grade and
visa-versa

• Where an upgrade is approached on

downgrade, tolerable speed reduction may be
increased to account for higher approach Critical Lengths of Grade for design, assumed
Typical Heavy Truck of 120 kg/kW,
speed for trucks Entering Speed = 110km/h

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Lengths of Crest (Summit) Curves (AASTHO approach)

A
H
h

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Lengths of Crest (Summit) Curves (AASTHO approach)

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Lengths of Crest (Summit) Curves (AASTHO approach)
• The rate of change of grade at successive points on the curve is a
constant amount for equal increments of horizontal distance, and is
equal to the algebraic difference between intersecting tangent grades
divided by the length of the curve or A/L in percent per unit length

• The reciprocal L/A is the horizontal distance needed to make 1%

change in gradient- termed as “K” (a measure of curvature)

• “K” is useful in determining minimum lengths of vertical curves for

various design speeds

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Lengths of Crest (Summit) Curves (AASTHO approach)
• The figure shows minimum
lengths of vertical curves for
different values of A to
provide the minimum SSD for
each design speed

• Solid lines give the minimum

vertical curve lengths, on the
basis of rounded values of K

Design Controls for Crest Vertical Curves—Open

Road Conditions

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 Lengths of Crest (Summit) Curves (AASTHO approach)
Design Stopping K
Speed Sight
(km/h) Distance(m) Calculated Design
60 85 11.0 11
80 130 25.7 26
100 185 52.0 52
110 220 73.6 74

• To the right of S=L line, the value of K or length of vertical curve per percent
change in A, is a simple and convenient expression of the design control
• The design control in terms of K covers all combination of A and L for any
design speed- thus A and L need not be mentioned separately in a
tabulation of design value

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Lengths of Crest (Summit) Curves (AASTHO approach)
• Where S>L, the computed values plot as a curve that bends to the left,
and for small values of A the vertical curve lengths are zero: does not
represent desirable design practice

• A minimum length of vertical curve is used: expressed as either a

single value or a range of different design speeds, or a function of A

• General practice is to provide Lmin = 0.6 V , Where V is design speed in

km/h and Lmin in m. These terminal adjustments are shown as vertical
lines

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Lengths of Crest (Summit) Curves (AASTHO approach)
• Design values of K when S<L can be used without significant error
where S>L by extending diagonal lines to meet the minimum length
vertical lines: results in appreciable differences from the theoretical
only where A is small and little or no additional cost is involved in
obtaining longer vertical curves

• From drainage consideration a minimum grade of 0.3% should be

reached at a point about 15m from the level point on the curve- this
corresponds to K=51m per percent change in grade

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Lengths of Crest (Summit) Curves (AASTHO approach)
• Combination below and to the right of K=51 line denotes flatter
curves: Special care for drainage is required near the high points of
summit curves

• No need to consider K=51 as a design limit – only drainage to be

designed more carefully when K >51

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Lengths of Crest (Summit) Curves (AASTHO approach)

A
H
h

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Lengths of Crest (Summit) Curves (AASTHO approach)

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Lengths of Sag (Valley) Curves (AASTHO approach)

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Lengths of Sag (Valley) Curves (AASTHO approach)

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 Lengths of Sag (Valley) Curves (AASTHO approach)
• Drainage control: Same as crest (summit) curve, i.e. K = 51 where a curbed
section is used)
• General appearance: For small to intermediate value of A, a thumb rule of
minimum length L = 30A is used
• The headlight sight distance appears to be the most logical criteria for general
use
• Same as crest (summit) curves, it is convenient to expression the design
control for sag (valley) curves in terms of K rates for all values of A
• Longer curves are desired wherever practical, but special attention to drainage
should be exercised where values of K in excess of 51 m per percent change in
grade are used

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Lengths of Sag (Valley) Curves (AASTHO approach)
Headlight sight distance criteria

Comfort Criteria
L

Ls = Length of spiral or cubic parabola Ls =L/2

= L/2, where L = Total length of valley
curve
N
• Radial acceleration = v2/R
• Radial acceleration changes from zero to v2/R over the
length Ls during time t = Ls/v
• Rate of change of radial acceleration C = (v3/LsR)
• Length Ls = v3/CR
Value of R (at length Ls ) = Ls/N
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Lengths of Sag (Valley) Curves (AASTHO approach)

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Climbing Lanes for Two-lane Highways (AASTHO)
• Freedom and safety of operation on
two-lane highways are adversely
affected by heavily loaded trucks
operating on grades of sufficient length

• Climbing lane is an added lane for

vehicles moving slowly uphill so that
other vehicles using the normal lane are Climbing lane

not delayed

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Climbing Lanes for Two-lane Highways (AASTHO)
• A two lane highway with a climbing lane is not considered as three-lane
highway
Plan
Climbing lanes

Profile

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Climbing Lanes for Two-lane Highways (AASTHO)
• Climbing lanes are designed
for each direction independent
of the other

• Depending on the alignment

and profile conditions, they Climbing lane without overlap
may not overlap, or they may
overlap (crest with a long
grade on each side)

Climbing lane with overlap

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Climbing Lanes for Two-lane Highways (AASTHO)
• It is desirable to provide a climbing lane on a two-lane highway where
the grade, traffic volume and heavy vehicle volume combine to degrade
traffic operations from those on the approach of grade

• If the traffic volume is low and delay of cars is only occasional,

climbing lane although desirable, may not be economically viable even
where the critical length of grade is exceeded

• In such situations, other options (such as slow moving vehicle

turnouts) may be explored to reduce delay to occasional passenger
cars from slow moving vehicles

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Climbing Lanes for Two-lane Highways (AASTHO)
Criteria to be Satisfied to Justify a Climbing Lane for a Two-lane Highway

The following three criteria, reflecting economic considerations, should be

satisfied:

a) Upgrade traffic flow rate in excess of 200 vehicles per hour

b) Upgrade truck flow rate in excess of 20 vehicles per hour

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Climbing Lanes for Two-lane Highways (AASTHO)
c) One of the following conditions exists

i. A 15 km/h or greater speed reduction is expected for a typical

heavy truck

ii. Level of service E or F exists on the grade

iii. A reduction of two or more levels of service is experienced

when moving from the approach segment to the grade

High crash frequencies may justify the addition of climbing lane

regardless of grade or traffic volumes

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Climbing Lanes for Two-lane Highways (AASTHO)
Where an added lane should begin depends upon

 Speed at which trucks approach the grade

 Extent of sight distance restrictions on approach

 Where there are no sight distance restrictions or other conditions

that limit speeds on the approach, the climbing lane may be
introduced on the upgrade beyond its beginning

 The 15 km/hr decrease in truck speed below the average running

speed is the accepted basis for determining the location at which to
begin climbing lanes

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Climbing Lanes for Two-lane Highways (AASTHO)

 With a downgrade approach, 15 km/hr speed reduction would occur

at longer distance and, with an upgrade approach, they would be
shorter
 Distances thus determined may be used to establish the point at
which a climbing lane should begin

 Where restrictions, upgrade approaches, or other conditions

indicate the likelihood of low speeds for approaching trucks, the
climbing lane should be introduced near the foot of the grade

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 Climbing Lanes for Two-lane Highways (AASTHO)
 The beginning of the climbing lane should be preceded by a tapered section
with a desirable taper ratio of 25:1 that should be at least 90 m long

 The ideal design is to extend a climbing lane to a point beyond the crest,
where a typical truck could attain a speed that is within 15 km/h of the speed
of the other vehicles with a desirable speed of at least 60 km/h

 Where this is not possible, a practical point to end the climbing lane is where
trucks can return to the normal lane without undue interference with other
traffic
 An appropriate taper length should be provided to permit trucks to return
smoothly to the normal lane
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Coordination of Horizontal and Vertical Alignment
• General considerations
 Horizontal and vertical alignment should not be designed
independently. They must complement each other because poorly
designed combinations can spoil the good points and aggravate the
deficiencies of each
 Excellence in the design of each and of their combination enhances
vehicle control, encourages uniform speed, and improves appearance,
nearly always without additional cost

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Coordination of Horizontal and Vertical Alignment
• General Design Controls
 Curvature and grades should be in proper balance
 Vertical curvature superimposed on horizontal curvature, or vice versa,
generally results in a more pleasing facility, but such combinations
should be analyzed for their effect on traffic
 Sharp horizontal curvature should not be introduced at or near the top
of a pronounced crest vertical curve

 Sharp horizontal curvature should not be introduced near the bottom

of a steep grade approaching or near the low point of a pronounced
sag vertical curve.

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Coordination of Horizontal and Vertical Alignment
 Both horizontal curvature and profile should be made as flat as
practical at intersections
 In residential areas, the alignment should be designed to minimize
nuisance to the neighborhood

 The alignment must be designed such that pedestrian facilities are

accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities

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 Coordination of Horizontal and Vertical Alignment
Alignment Coordination in Design

• Avoid designing little

local dips in an
otherwise long, uniform
grade. These dips
usually result from a
desire to balance cut
and fill and to reduce
overhaul

Profile of Tangent Alignment

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Coordination of Horizontal and Vertical Alignment

• Short humps in the

grade should be
avoided

Profile of Curve Alignment

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Coordination of Horizontal and Vertical Alignment

• This combination is
undesirable for two
reasons: i)the tangent
between the curves is
too short ii) the reverse
occurs on a crest

Short Tangent on a Crest between Two Horizontal Curves

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Coordination of Horizontal and Vertical Alignment

• This combination
presents a poor
appearance- the
horizontal curve looks
like a sharp angle

Sharp Angle Appearance

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Coordination of Horizontal and Vertical Alignment

• When horizontal and

vertical curves
coincide, a very
satisfactory appearance
results

Coinciding Curves in Horizontal and Vertical Dimension

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Coordination of Horizontal and Vertical Alignment

• Very long flat curves,

even where not
required by a design
speed and regardless
of profile, also have a
pleasing appearance
when the central angle
is very small

Horizontal Alignment with Small Central Angles

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Coordination of Horizontal and Vertical Alignment

• Coordination between
horizontal and vertical
alignment creating a
rich effect of three-
dimensional S-curves
composed of convex
and concave helixes

Coinciding Vertices in Horizontal and Vertical Dimensions

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Coordination of Horizontal and Vertical Alignment

• A disjointed effect
occurs when the
beginning of a
horizontal curve is
hidden from the driver
by an intervening crest
while the continuation
of the curve is visible in
the distance beyond the
intervening crest
Horizontal alignment should be balanced

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Coordination of Horizontal and Vertical Alignment

• Good coordination of
horizontal and vertical
alignment

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Methods for Increasing Passing Opportunities on Two Lane Roads

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Methods for Increasing Passing Opportunities on Two Lane Roads

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Methods for Increasing Passing Opportunities on Two Lane Roads

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Methods for Increasing Passing Opportunities on Two Lane Roads

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Emergency Escape Ramp

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Emergency Escape Ramp

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Emergency Escape Ramp

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Emergency Escape Ramp

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 THANK YOU

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References
• Khana, S. and Justo, C., 2015. Highway engineering. Roorkee: Nem Chand & Bros.

• Kadiyali, L. and Lal, N., 2005. Principles and practices of highway engineering. Nai Sarak, Delhi:
Khanna Publishers.

• Kadiyali, L., 2018. Traffic engineering and transportation planning. Delhi: Khanna Publishers.

• IRC: 73-1980, Geometric Design Standards for Rural (Non-Urban) Highways, Indian Roads
Congress, New Delhi

• AASHTO. 2011. A policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets. American Association of
State Highway and Transportation Officials, Washington DC, USA

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