Side drains and mitre drains

LEARNING ELEMENT OBJECTIVES

When you have learned LE-3, you should:
- know the function of side drains and mitre drains;
- know the correct dimensions of the drains;
- know how to construct the side drain/mitre drain and how to control the depth and width.
SIDE DRAINS
The function of the side drains (or ditches) is to collect the water from the carriage way and surrounding areas. When they are
excavated the outcoming material serves to form the very important road surface drain, the camber.
The size of the side ditches must therefore be sufficient to cope with the run-off water. The outcoming material should be sufficient
to provide a compacted camber of 5 per cent. When a road with 4 1/2 m formation width is to be provided with a 5 per cent
compacted camber (7 per cent loose) the size of the ditch should be as shown in figure 6 (area = 0.16 + 0.2 = 0.36 m
2
).

Fig 6
When there are ditches on both sides of the road the depth of each side ditch can be reduced to 0.3 m. The soil from the first ditch
can partly serve to raise the elevation of the carriage way.
On flat or slightly undulating terrain you should aim to achieve a longitudinal gradient between 2 and 5 per cent (1:50 and 1:20).
With gradients less than 2 per cent silting occurs easily while with gradients steeper than 5 per cent the ditches will erode easily.

Fig 7
Constructing the side ditches
The side ditches are constructed in two steps: first a rectangular trench is excavated (ditching) and then a slope is made from the
bottom of the ditch up towards the carriage way (sloping). The soil coming out of the ditches is placed in the middle of the road.

Fig 8
The reason for excavating the ditch in this manner and shape is that it is easier to measure and control than a traditional V-shaped
ditch made in one operation.
The correct width and depth is controlled with a stick which has been cut to correct length. Each worker who works on drainage
should have his own stick.
Mitre drains
The mitre drains (or off-shoot drains) lead away the water from the side ditches to lower areas.
Where possible they should be placed at the intervals shown below. In principle, the more mitre drains the better!
Remember to make the gradient of the side drains a minimum of 2 per cent (even in flat terrain, see figure 7).
Road gradient Mitre drain intervals
% should not exceed metre when discharging the water on to a piece of farmland metre
12 40
10 80
8 120 if exceeded 20 to 50 wherever possible onto a
6 160 scouring will occur boundary
4 200
1-2 50 if exceeded silting will occur
Remember that these are maximum distances; the quicker the water is led off the road, the less damage (either from scouring or
silting) will occur. Wherever possible, the discharged water from the mitre drains should be channelled to land boundaries in order
to avoid damage to farm land. The soil coming out when the mitre drain is excavated should be deposited on the downhill side of
the drain.
Also the mitre drains should have a minimum gradient of 2 per cent.

Fig 9