Chapter 1

Introduction to Highway
Engineering

Associate Professor Dr. Mohamad Yusri Aman

Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia 1
 What is a Highway?
Highway pavement is a structure
consisting of superimposed layers
of selected and processed materials
whose primary function is to
distribute the applied vehicle load
to the sub grade.
OR
It can also be defined as “structure
which separates the tires of
vehicles from the under lying
foundation.”
 Road Pavement
Pavement is the upper part of
roadway, airport or parking area
structure.

It includes all layers resting on the

original ground.

It consists of all structural elements

or layers, including shoulders.
 Road Pavement
Pavement construction is a combination
of science and art.

Mix design and structural layer design

are determined through carefully
controlled experiments and equations,
and,..

specific combination of factors such as

temperature, pavement thickness,
material properties and subgrade.
What is important of Highway
Engineering?
 Functions of the Road Pavement
 Reduce and distribute the traffic loading so
as not to damage the subgrade.
 Provide vehicle access between two points
under all-weather conditions
 Provide safe, smooth and comfortable ride to
road users without undue delays and
excessive wear & tear.
 Meet environmental and aesthetics
requirement
 Reasonable economy
HISTORY OF ROADS
 HISTORY OF ROADS
ROMAN ROADS
Roman roads, dating back to 312 BC, were built using rocks bounded by
lime grout and other natural pozzolans as binders.

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 HISTORY OF ROADS
TELFORD PAVEMENTS
 Thomas Telford started building roads in the late 1700s while he was
Surveyor of Public Works in Salop county.
 He attempted to build relatively flat roads (no more than a 1 in 30 slope).
 The pavement thickness was between 14 to 18 inches.
 Telford pavements did not use binding agents to hold the stones together

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 HISTORY OF ROADS
MACADAM PAVEMENTS
 Introduced by John McAdam (often known as Macadam) in the early
1800s.
 He introduced the usage of angular aggregates on well compacted
subgrade for better performance.
 The subgrade was sloped to improve drainage.
 The angular aggregates were placed in two layers for a total depth of 8
inches (maximum aggregate size was 3 inches).

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MACADAM PAVEMENTS (Cont’s)

 On top of this a wearing course was placed, about 2 inches thick

(maximum aggregate size was 1 inch).
 He did not use binder to hold the stones together because he realized
that the broken stones would eventually become bound together by fines
generated by traffic.

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 HISTORY OF ROADS
TAR MACADAM PAVEMENTS
 Built using the basic Macadam pavement but the surface material was
bound using tar.
 The tar (coal tar) was a residue from coal gas lighting.
 The first tar macadam road was build in Lincold Road in 1848.
 “Tarmac” was also introduced in the early 1900s using blast furnace slag
coated with tar, pitch, portland cement and a resin.

SHEET ASPHALT PAVEMENTS

 Introduced in the mid-1800s, it consisted of sheet asphalt placed on a
concrete base which had a thickness of between 4 inches (for light traffic)
and 6 inches (for heavy traffic).
 Traffic load, concrete strength and soil support were the parameters used
to determine the final concrete layer thickness.

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 HISTORY OF ROADS

BITHULITIC PAVEMENTS
 One of the earliest Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) pavements in history.
 Introduced by Frederick J. Warren when he issued patents for a hot mix
asphalt paving material and process which he called ‘bitulithic’.
 A typical bithulitic mix contained 6% bituminous cement and graded
aggregates proportioned for low air voids.

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 ASPHALT PAVEMENT HISTORY
 The first recorded use of asphalt by humans was by the Sumerians
around 3,000 years.
 Around 1500 A.D., the Incas of Peru were using a composition similar to
modern bituminous macadam to pave parts of their highway system.

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 TAR VS. ASPHALT
 Tar and asphalt are two different materials.
 Tar, often called "coal tar" is a byproduct of the destructive distillation of
coal to form coke.
 Asphalt is a petroleum residue left over from the distillation of crude oil.
 In pavement applications, tar is generally more brittle and less elastic
than asphalt causing it to crack under typical loading and
environmental conditions.
 Tar will, however, not dissolve as easily in the presence of lighter
petroleum distillation products such as gasoline and kerosene.
 While asphalt is used throughout the pavement industry, tar is
generally limited to sealant use.

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 PAVEMENT TYPES
FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT
 Those which are surfaced with bituminous (or asphalt) materials.
 These types of pavements are called "flexible" since the total pavement
structure "bends" or "deflects" due to traffic loads.
 A flexible pavement structure is generally composed of several layers of
materials which can accommodate this "flexing".
 Flexible pavement uses more flexible surface course and distributes loads
over a smaller area.
 It relies on a combination of layers for transmitting load to the subgrade

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 PAVEMENT STRUCTURE
FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT

Wearing Course
Surface
Binder Course
Base

Sub-base
Formation Level
Subgrade

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 Flexible Pavement

 Those which are surfaced with bituminous

(or asphalt) materials.

 These types of pavements are called

"flexible" since the total pavement structure
"bends" or "deflects" due to traffic loads. SUBGRADE

 A flexible pavement structure is generally Pavement behave respect to loading

composed of several layers of materials
which can accommodate this "flexing".
 PAVEMENT TYPES
RIGID PAVEMENT
 Those which are surfaced with Portland cement concrete (PCC).
 These types of pavements are called "rigid" because they are
substantially stiffer than flexible pavements due to PCC's high stiffness.
 Rigid pavement, because of PCC's high stiffness, tends to distribute the
load over a relatively wide area of subgrade.
 The concrete slab itself supplies most of a rigid pavement's structural
capacity.

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 JPCP JRCP
Jointed Plain Concrete Jointed Reinforced
Pavement Concrete Pavement
CRCP
Continuously Reinforced
Concrete Pavement
 PAVEMENT STRUCTURE
RIGID PAVEMENT

Concrete Slab

Sub-base

Formation Level
Subgrade

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 Pavement Engineering (BFT 40203) Dr. Mohamad Yusri

Surface Course
1. Rigid pavements are so named
because the pavement structure
deflects very little under loading due
to the high modulus of elasticity of
their surface course.

2. A rigid pavement structure is typically

composed of a PCC surface course
built on top of either
(1) the subgrade or (2) an
underlying base course.

3. Because of its relative rigidity, the pavement structure distributes loads

over a wide area with only one, or at most two, structural layers.
 ROAD CROSS-SECTIONAL ELEMENTS
RIGHT-OF-WAY (ROW)

Shoulder Median
Clear zone Travel lanes
Verge

Embankment

Ditch
Divided Rural Highway 24
ROAD CROSS-SECTIONAL ELEMENTS

C
D

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 ROAD CROSS-SECTIONAL ELEMENTS
 For rural cross sections, the roadway width is the combined width of the
 traveled way, median, shoulders, auxiliary lanes

 For urban cross sections, the

roadway consists of the ravel
lanes.
 auxiliary lanes including parking
lanes, any bike lanes, median,
curb and gutter

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 ROAD CROSS-SECTIONAL ELEMENTS
TRAVEL LANE
 provide the path for travel lane width greatly influences the safety and
comfort of driving.
 travel lane widths generally vary between 2.7 m and 3.6 m depending on
functional classification, traffic volumes, and project scope of work.

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 ROAD CROSS-SECTIONAL ELEMENTS
MEDIAN
 also known as the central reservation.
 the median width is measured from the inside edge of the two traveled
ways and,
 includes inside shoulders and/or median curb and gutters.
 provides segregation between opposing directions of the traveled ways.

 assists in draining of surface runof

when planted with trees and shrubs,
a median will help reduce glare from
vehicle.
 Headlights median can be used for
future expansion of the highway (for
additional number of lanes due to
traffic increase).
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 ROAD CROSS-SECTIONAL ELEMENTS
SHOULDER
The road shoulder is a reserved area by the verge
of the road. It may be either paved (HMA or
concrete) or unpaved (aggregate or turf).

The functions of road shoulder include:

 provide structural support for the traveled way
 provide support for guardrail and prevents erosion around
guardrail posts
 prevent or minimize pavement edge drop-offs
 provide space for emergency and discretionary stop
 improve roadside safety by providing more recovery area for run-
off-the-road vehicles
 facilitate maintenance operations
 facilitate pavement drainage
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 provide space for pedestrian and bicycle use
 ROAD CROSS-SECTIONAL ELEMENTS

CLEAR ZONE
 Clear zone is defined as the total roadside border area, starting at the
edge of the traveled way, available for safe use by errant vehicles.

 Simply stated, it is an unobstructed, relatively flat area beyond the

edge of the traveled way that allows a driver to stop safely or regain
control of a vehicle that leaves the traveled way.

 This area may consist of a shoulder, a recoverable slope, a non-

recoverable slope, and/or a clear run-out area.

 The desired minimum width is dependent upon traffic volumes and

speeds and on the roadside geometry.

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 DEVELOPMENT OF ROADS IN MALAYSIA
 The road development in the Malay Peninsula started during the British
occupation.

 Roads were built to transport products of mining and plantation industry.

 Tin mining and rubber industry were the important reasons for road
construction. The first road was built in Perak, linking Kamunting and
Ujung Tembo.

 The construction then was extended to Pulau Pinang. The active
mining activity in Lembah Kinta also become the reason of road
construction from Taiping to Ipoh in 1891.

 Currently, Peninsula Malaysia has about 847.7 kilometers of road

linking North Malaysia to South Malaysia. The total length of highway
throughout Malaysia is about 1192 kilometers, including expressways
such as NKVE, ELITE, KESAS and BESRAYA.
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 ROAD STANDARDS IN MALAYSIA
Standard Description
R6 / U6 - highest geometric design standard
- serves long trips with high speeds, comfort and safety
- with divided carriageway
- full access control
- e.g. rural and urban expressways
R5 / U5 - high geometric design standard
- serves long to intermediate trips with high to medium speeds
- partial access control
- e.g. highways, primary roads and arterials
R4 / U4 - medium geometric standard
- serves intermediate trip lengths with medium speeds
- partial access control
- e.g. primary roads, secondary roads, minor arterials and
major collectors

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 ROAD STANDARDS IN MALAYSIA

R3 / U3 - low geometric standard

- serves mainly local traffic
- partial or no access control
- e.g. secondary roads, collectors and major local streets
R2/ U2 - lowest geometric standard for two-way flow
- applied only to local traffic with low volumes of vehicles of
commercial traffic
- e.g. minor roads and local streets
R1 / U1 - very low geometric standard
- applied to very low traffic where the chances of two-way flow
is low
R1a applied to local access to restricted areas such as access to
microwave stations and security areas
U1a applied to local access to low cost housing areas

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ROAD CLASSIFICATION IN MALAYSIA

CATEGORIES
OF
ROADS

RURAL ROADS URBAN ROADS

Expressway Expressway
Highway Arterial
Primary Road Collector
Secondary Road Local Street
Minor Road

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RURAL ROADS

Expressways
 divided interstate highways for through traffic.
 has full access control with grade separated
intersections.
 for fast traveling.
 serve long trips.
 provide higher traveling speed and comfort.
 designed to the highest standards.

Highways
 constitute the interstate national network.
 complement the expressway network.
 link up directly or indirectly the federal and state
capitals, and points of entry/exit to the country.
 serve long to intermediate trips.
 high to medium speed.
 smooth traffic is provided.
 partial access control. 35
RURAL ROADS

Primary Roads
 constitute the major roads forming the
basic network within a state.
 serve intermediate trip lengths and medium
traveling speeds.
 smooth traffic is provided.
 partial access control.
 link up state and district capitals or other
major towns.

Secondary Roads
 constitute the major roads forming the
basic network within a district or regional
development areas.
 serve intermediate trips
 partial access control
 link up major towns within the district or
regional development areas 36
RURAL ROADS

Minor Roads
 applies to all roads other than those
described above.
 form the basic road network within a land
 scheme or other inhabited areas include
roads with special functions such as
 holiday resort roads, security roads or
access roads to microwave stations.
 serve local traffic with short trip lengths.
 partial or no access control.

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 Schematic illustration of an urban road network

URBAN STREETS
Expressway
Arterial
Collector
Local Street

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URBAN ROADS
Expressways
 divided highways for through traffic
 form the basic network in urbanised area
 has full access control
 with grade separated intersections
 for fast traveling
 serve long trips
 provide higher traveling speed and comfort
 designed to the highest standards
 complement the rural expressways

Arterials
 continuous roads with partial access control for
through traffic.
 convey traffic from residential areas to the vicinity of
the central business district, or from one part of the
city to another which does not intend to penetrate
identifiable neighborhood.
 smooth traffic flow is essential since they carry large 39
traffic volumes.
URBAN ROADS
Collectors
 roads with partial access control designed to serve on a
 collector/distributor of traffic between arterials and local road
systems.
 major roads which penetrate and serve identifiable
neighbourhood,
 commercial areas and industrial areas.

Local Streets
 the basic network within a neighbourhood and serves to offer
direct access to abutting land.
 links to the collector roads and thus serve short trip lengths
through traffic should be discouraged.

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 ROAD ADMINISTRATION IN MALAYSIA
 For the purpose of road administration, roads are classified as Tolled
Highways, Federal, State, Local Authority (City Hall, Municipal or
Local Council) and Kampung (District Office) Roads depending upon
their jurisdiction.

Tolled Highways
 link cities/towns/new developments in order to increase mobility and
reduce congestion on federal highways.
 for through traffic with full access control.
 involve grade-separated intersection.
 each carriageway consists of two to three traveling lanes and an
emergency lane.
 provide facilities such as rest and relax areas, shelters for
motorcyclists,
 emergency phone service, etc.
 e.g. PLUS, NKVE, ELITE, SPRINT, KESAS

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 ROAD ADMINISTRATION IN MALAYSIA
Federal Roads
 roads that are gazetted under the Federal Road Ordinance.
 roads linking state capitals, airports, railway stations and ports.
 also includes roads within FELDA land schemes and those in other
regional land schemes constructed with federal funds.
 maintenance of these roads is the responsibility of the federal
government.
 maintenance is carried out through the state JKR and funded by the
federal government.

State Roads
 all other roads within the states outside the jurisdiction of the local
authority or district office.
 built to JKR standards.
 constructed with state funds.
 maintenance of these roads is the responsibility of the state
government.
 maintenance is carried out through the state JKR. 42
 ROAD ADMINISTRATION IN MALAYSIA
Local Authority Roads
 all roads within the limits of the local authority (city hall, municipal or
town council).
 the local authority is responsible for the maintenance of such roads.

Village / District Office Roads

 all roads directly under the jurisdiction of the district office.
 usually unpaved roads with no right of way.
 the district office is responsible for the maintenance of these roads.

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 ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED IN THE
ADMINISTRATION OF ROADS IN MALAYSIA

Economic Planning Unit (EPU) Unit Perancang Ekonomi

(UPE)
 forming and planning policies for all aspects of
socioeconomic developments for the country.
 the Infrastructure and Utilities Section plays a role in
 the planning, formation and evaluation of transportation
policies and programs
 identifying, analyzing, evaluating and coordinating all
road developments plans

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 ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED IN THE
ADMINISTRATION OF ROADS IN MALAYSIA

Highway Planning Unit (HPU) Unit Perancang Jalan (UPJ)

 conducts traffic engineering studies such as traffic volume, origin-
destination,
 traffic growth rate, vehicle speed, accident-prone areas, etc.
 among the function of the HPU are :
a. data collection of travel characteristics and traffic operations
incorporating highway planning and land use planning.
b. establishing the needs of the highway sector for long-term/short-
term programs.
c. studying the feasibilities of highway projects
d. studying the causes of accidents, identifying areas prone to
accidents and coming up with steps to reduce/prevent accidents

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Malaysian Highway Authority (MHA) Lembaga Lebuhraya
Malaysia (LLM)
LLM is responsible in:
- the supervision and execution of highway design, construction and
maintenance.
- the supervision and execution of the design, construction and
maintenance of rest and relax areas and other facilities.
- toll collection from highway users.
- planning and research of effective usage of highways and its facilities.
- taking steps to further develop existing highways and its facilities.

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Public Works Department (PWD) Jabatan Kerja Raya (JKR)
 responsible for development projects, especially in the construction of
public buildings, federal roads, state roads and bridges.
 involved in planning, construction and maintenance.
 the Road Branch (Cawangan Jalan) is responsible for planning and
 preserving the conditions of roads for the safety and comfort of the road
users.
 the Road Branch is also involved in pavement rehabilitation, road
widening, and the strengthening and repair of pavements, pavement
drainage systems and road furniture

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Road Transport Department (RTD) Jabatan Pengangkutan Jalan (JPJ)

Objectives :
- improve road safety by monitoring motorized vehicles and drivers
- collection of road taxes
Functions :
- enforce the Road Transport Act 1987
- update the tax collection system
- assist in reducing road accidents
- assist the government in their effort reduce the effects of transport on
the environment
Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board (CVLP)
Lembaga Perlesenan Kenderaan Perdagangan (LPKP)

- responsible for issuing and controlling of license permits of commercial

vehicles and public transport such as taxis, buses and rented cars.
- the function of this board is limited to the consideration of applications
for licenses and the imposing restrictions after applications are
approved 48
State Police Polis Negeri
 the Traffic Branch is responsible for ensuring safety and discipline of
drivers on the road, and law enforcement against traffic offenders.
 the role of the State Police include ensuring smooth traffic by patrolling
the roads and easing traffic congestion.
 manually if the need arises:
 issuing summons to traffic offenders and collecting compounds from
them recording, analyzing and investigating road accidents.
 controlling traffic during large-scale functions

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Department of Town and Country Planning
Jabatan Perancangan Bandar dan Desa (JPBD)
 arrange and control developments in accordance with the Town and
Country.
 Planning Act 1976 in the transportation sector, JPBD is in charge of
carrying out planning of transportation systems within a town.
 the State JPBD assists the State government and Town Councils in the
planning of land use and the control of development in accordance with
state and national policies.
 the State JPBD also prepares structure plans and local plans covering all
 aspects related with planning, which includes transportation.

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Local Authorities Pihak Berkuasa Tempatan (PBT)
- District Council, Town Council, Municipality Council, and City Hall
- plan and develop areas within its administration
- the PBT is responsible for
- infrastructure allocation and road planning
- managing and controlling traffic congestion
- creating adequate parking space and managing parking fee collection
- street landscaping
- providing public transportation services which are prompt, affordable
and effective.
- constructing and maintaining roads

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Department of Environment (DOE) Jabatan Alam Sekitar (JAS)
 controls and monitors environmental pollution
 preserve and conserve the environment
 n the context of road transport, the DOE plays its role in enforcing the
Motorized Vehicle Regulations 1977 through the Environmen tQuality
Act 1974

controlling and monitoring of exhaust and noise emission of vehicles

studying and analyzing the impacts of transportation coproducing
Environmental Impact Assessment reports for new projects and
developments

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Summary of the Functions of Government Agencies in Road and
Transport Administration
Function
 Planning, financing and control of
road construction
 Design, construction and
maintenance of roads and
highways
 Road licensing
 Control and enforcement
 Road Safety
 Preservation of the environment
 Town and country planning
 Providing urban traffic facilities
Department / Agency Involved
Economic Planning Unit
Highway Planning Unit
Public Works Department
Malaysian Highway Authority
Road Transport Department
Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board
State Police
Road Transport Department
Road Safety Council
Department of Environment
Department of Town and Country
Planning
Local Authorities
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QUESTIONS?
?
Thank you …