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| Theme : T2 - Reduce the costs of construction, rehabilitation, and maintenance of road infrastructure to help reduce vehicle operation costs. |
| Status |
Current |
| Institution |
Intech Associates |
| Purpose |
To refine, document and disseminate low-cost, labour-based alternative road surfacing options suitable for local small-scale/community contracting enterprises and employment creation for the poor. |
| Objectives |
To produce:,
a) Technical: Guidelines and documentation on the selection and use of surfacing options for rural access roads. |
| Methodologies |
Rationale
Gravel or laterite surfacing is widely adopted for low cost rural and access roads in many developing countries.
However, the Low Cost Surfacing (LCS) research makes a strong case for a more rigorous approach to evaluation of road surfacing options than hitherto adopted, in particular where extremes of conditions are encountered.
A gravel/laterite road surface can be appropriate where material quality is to appropriate surfacing specifications, gravel haul distances are short, longitudinal road gradients are less than about 6% (applicable to moderate/high rainfall areas), rainfall is low or moderate, traffic is not excessive, finance and resources are going to be available for the necessary ongoing periodic regravelling, and dry season dust generation is not severe. A gravel/laterite surface can also be appropriate as part of a planned and properly resourced ‘stage construction’ approach.
However, gravel is a ‘wasting’ surface and material losses due to the effects of alignment, traffic and weather can be up to 5cm of thickness per year or more, even for good quality surfacing material. The use of poor quality material will result in increased rates of gravel loss. Furthermore, haul distances can be long, and will inevitably increase as available or accessible gravel deposits are worked out. This type of surfacing can create a substantial periodic maintenance re-gravelling liability for local authorities and communities. Many currently lack the resources and/or capacity to provide adequate maintenance and the risk is high for deterioration back to earth standard. There are also environmental and other justifiable concerns relating to gravel surfacing.
Fortunately, there is a range of alternative surfacing and paving options proven in various countries, which can provide appropriate, economical and sustainable alternatives in many instances. Suitability will depend on local circumstances. These alternatives, together with an appropriate use of the available gravel materials in lower pavement layers, may be cheaper in whole-life-cost terms. Many of these alternatives can be constructed by labour and light equipment methods suitable for rural road application by small local enterprises and would have lower maintenance (and therefore more manageable) requirements than gravel. Rural poor people could derive benefits from employment, as well as the facility of sustainable access. In some cases the use of engineered earth road standard will be the most appropriate immediate solution to access requirements (also see KaR 7790).
Existing national standards for rural road surfacing usually provide insufficient opportunities and guidance for the appropriate use of gravel and alternative road surfaces. A more rational design approach is required which takes due account of local conditions and road environment, traffic characteristics and loading, maintenance, resources, technical and implementation options, environmental and whole life cost considerations.
The Low-cost, Labour-based, Paved Roads for Poor Communities (LCS) project aims to provide guidelines on the use of the various paving and surfacing options. |
| Participants |
Intech Associates is working closely with a number of partners in Cambodia, India, Kenya, South Africa, Thailand, Vietnam and elsewhere, including TRL, the ILO Upstream Project, Ministry of Rural Development, Institute of Technology Cambodia, MoT Vietnam, WSPI, World Bank and participation in the International Focus Group. |
| Outputs |
Expected Outputs
a) Trial paving sections constructed in Cambodia in cooperation with the ILO Upstream Project and Ministry of Rural development.
b) Technical and Management Guidelines and documentation on the selection and use of surfacing options for rural access roads, to be posted on the Transport Links website and to be disseminated through fora such as the International Focus Group and PIARC (World Road Association).
c) Trained local contractors, local employment and skills development in alternative paving techniques in Cambodia.
d) Tertiary education material on alternative surfacing options available and taught in local educational institutions
Outputs Available Now
Documents available to download:-
LCS Working Paper No 1 - Rationale For The Compilation of International Guidelines on Low-Cost, Labour-Based, Alternative & Sustainable Road Surfacings
LCS Working Paper No 3 - Costing of Roadworks (draft)
LCS Working Paper No. 5 - A Tractor and Labour Based Routine Maintenance System for Unpaved Rural Roads
LCS Working Paper No. 7 (Part 2) - Bamboo Reinforced Concrete Pavement Road Construction in Cambodia (draft)
LCS Working Paper No. 7 (Part 3) - Bamboo Reinforced Concrete Pavement Road Construction in Cambodia (draft)
LCS Working Paper No. 11 - Proceedings of GMSARN Seminar on Rural Roads
LCS Working Paper No. 12 - Paving the Way for Rural Development and Poverty Reduction
LCS Working Paper No. 13 - Report on Puok Trials Construction
LCS Working Paper No. 16 - Clay Brick Paving Investigations in Vietnam
LCS Working Paper No. 19 - Evaluation of Mark 2 Cambodia Light Grader
Draft Guidelines on the use of Gravel/Laterite |
| Results |
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| Progress |
A network of potential data sources was initiated and document collection and review has been organised. Working links have been established with ILO ASIST Africa and Asia Pacific, Cambodia ILO Upstream Project and Ministry of Rural Development (MRD), TRL Ltd, PIARC Committee C 20, researchers in Chieng Mai, and Witwatersrand Universities. Visits were made to Cambodia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Thailand and Vietnam. A new collaboration link has also been made with the DFID-World Bank funded MoT Rural Transport 2 Project in Vietnam. The International Focus Group for complementary research projects has been formed through the facilitation of TRL (see separate IFG web page). Working papers are being written. Rural road surfacing workshops have been held in Cambodia and Vietnam. Trial pavement sections have been constructed close to Siem Reap in Cambodia in collaboration with the ILO Upstream Project and MRD. These trial sections are being monitored.
Draft gravel guidelines are available.
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| Duration |
2000-2004 |
| Contact |
Robert Petts |
| Comment |
The Forth International Focus Group (IFG)meeting is expected to be held in Kunming, China. Provisional dates are in March 2004. Check with the IFG webpage on this website before the event.
Your comments on and contributions to the LCS documentation are welcome.
Updated August 2003. |
 Please send any enquiries to research@transport-links.org
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