Presentation TITLE

AN ANALYTICAL REVIEW OF
TRRL ROAD NOTE 29 AND 31

GROUP MEMBERS

M. SHAHZAD KHAN (LEADER)

ABDULLAH KARIM
SHAFIULLAH JAN
 Road Note 29 (RN-29)

• Road Note No. 29 was first published in 1960 to provide a guide to the
structural design of roads carrying medium and heavy traffic.

• The 1965 revision widened the scope to include lightly trafficked roads, such
as those used in housing estates.

• Mr. P. D. Thompson of the Road Research Laboratory, Ministry of the

Environment introduced the Third Edition of Road Note 29 (Road Research
Laboratory 1970) and discussed the main design recommendations.
 Road Note 29 (RN-29)

• In 1970, The Transport and Road Research Laboratory (TRRL) in Britain

published a design manual for new pavement construction called “Road Note
29”.
• Design is based on CBR value.

• The thickness of the subbase is related to the CBR value of the subgrade and
to the total number of standard axle loads.

• The design charts and tables contained in Road Note 29 are derived from the
results of the TRRL’s many full-scale road tests under British conditions of
climate, materials, traffic loading etc.
 Thickness Design of Pavement Structure

• Road Note 29 presented the charts for determining the minimum thickness of
various layers of pavement structure.

• The main factors used in the design are the cumulative number of standard
axles, subgrade CBR and type of materials employed.

• After determining the traffic and design period, the subgrade, the subbase,
the base and the surface are each considered in turn.
 Traffic Analysis
• For the purpose of structural design, the loads imposed by private cars do not
contribute significantly to the structural damage caused to road pavements
by traffic.
• Therefore, only the number of commercial vehicles and their axle-loadings
are considered.

• Normally, the heavy commercial vehicles operate on the outermost lane (the
slow lane).

• Hence, the procedure provides designs applicable to this lane.

• These designs will be used over the whole carriageway width.
 Traffic Analysis
Conversion factors to be used to obtain the equivalent number of standard
axles from the number of commercial vehicles.
 subgrade

• The strength of the subgrade is a principal factor in determining the

thickness of the pavement.

• The strength of the subgrade is assessed on the CBR scale.

• Road Note 29 recommended that the water table should be prevented from
rising to within 600 mm of the finished subgrade level.

• This may be done by sub-soil drainage or by raising the finished subgrade

level by means of an embankment.
subbase
road Base Materials as Recommended by Road Note 29

“Road base” would be “Base course” in American and “Basecourse” would be “Binder course”.
base
base
base
base
Recommendation for Bituminous Surfacing in Road Note 29,
(Traffic in Cumulative Standard Axles, 10^6)
 Road Note 31 / Catalogue Method

• A Guide to the Structural Design of Bitumen Surfaced Roads in Tropical and Sub-tropical
Countries.
• ORN – 31 is based principally on research conducted in countries throughout the world
by the Overseas Centre, Transport Research Laboratory (TRL), UK, on behalf of the
Overseas Development Administration (ODA).
• Road Note 31 was first published in 1962 and revised in 1966, 1977 and 1993.
• Now Overseas Road Note (ORN) 31, 1993, 4th Edition.

• 4th edition of the Road Note 31 has drawn on the experience of TRL and collaborating
organizations in over 30 Tropical and Sub-tropical Countries.
• 4th edition extends the designs of previous editions to cater for traffic up to 30 million
equivalent standard axles and takes account of the variability in material properties and
construction control, the uncertainty in traffic forecasts, the effects of climate and high
axle loads and the overall statistical variability in road performance.
 design process

• 3 Main Steps to be followed in designing a new road pavement.

• These are:
(i) estimating the amount of traffic and the cumulative number of equivalent
standard axles that will use the road over the selected design life;
(ii) assessing the strength of the subgrade soil over which the road is to be
built;
(iii) selecting the most economical combination of pavement materials and
layer thicknesses that will provide satisfactory service over the design life of
the pavement using structural catalogues. (It is usually necessary to assume
that an appropriate level of maintenance is also carried out.)
pavement layers
 traffic
• The deterioration of paved roads caused by traffic results from both the
magnitude of the individual wheel loads and the number of times these
loads are applied.

• For pavement design purposes it is necessary to consider not only the total
number of vehicles that will use the road but also the wheel loads (or, for
convenience, the axle loads) of these vehicles.
 traffic

• For the purposes of structural design, cars and similar sized vehicles can be
ignored and only the total number and the axle loading of the heavy vehicles
that will use the road during its design life need to be considered.

• In this context, heavy vehicles are defined as those having an unladen weight
of 3000 kg or more.
traffic classes
 design life

• For most road projects an economic analysis period of between 10 and 20

years from the date of opening is appropriate.

• Design life does not mean that at the end of the period the pavement will be
completely worn out and in need of reconstruction; it means that towards
the end of the period the pavement will need to be strengthened so that it
can continue to carry traffic satisfactorily for a further period.

• Condition surveys of bituminous pavements should be carried out about

once a year as part of the inspection procedures for maintenance.
 Axle Loading: Axle Equivalency

• The damage that vehicles do to a road depends very strongly on the axle
loads of the vehicles.

• For pavement design purposes the damaging power of axles is related to a

'standard' axle of 8.16 tonnes using equivalence factors which have been
derived from empirical studies.

• In order to determine the cumulative axle load damage that a pavement will
sustain during its design life, it is necessary to express the total number of
heavy vehicles that will use the road over this period in terms of the
cumulative number of equivalent standard axles (esa).
Determination of Cumulative Equivalent Standard Axles
subgrade strength classes
material definition
charts
charts
charts
charts