ASSESSMENT OF MAINTENANCE AND REHABILITATION NEEDS OF ROADS AROUND ROORKEE

Abstract

Roorkee is an important and one of the oldest Tehsil of newly formed district, Haridwar in Uttar Pradesh (U.P.). It attracts traffic from Muzaffarnagar and Haridwar side through State Highway (SH-45), from Dehradun and Saharanpur side through Major District Road (MDR-121W) and from Landhaura side through Roorkee-Lalkurthi Road. Being located at strategic point, heavy 'vehicles of Indian army going to Laddakh and Leh passes through Roorkee on SH-45. Due to these factors, the roads around Roorkee are subjected to heavy traffic. These roads are undergoing progressive deterioration and need maintenance and rehabilitation (M&R) measures to be taken to provide safe and comfortable ride to the road users. The purpose of the present study is to assess the Maintenance and rehabilitation needs of these roads. The parameters considered for the present study are deflection (predicting structural condition) roughness (predicting riding quality), rut depth, cracks, and pot-holes (predicting the functional condition) and traffic volume. Field studies were conducted on selected test sections on Muzaffarnagar-Roorkee Road (SH-45), Polaris Motel-Roorkee Talkies Road (SH-45), Roorkee-Haridwar Road (SH-45), Roorkee-Chhutmalpur Road (MDR-121W) and Roorkee-Lalkurthi Road to get the data about these parameters. Analysis of data reveals that deflection on all test sections is greater than allowable deflection. Overlays are required to achieve adequate structural capacity. For most of the test sections, roughness value is greater than allowable limit, so maintenance measure such as surface dressing is recommended for these sections before overlaying is done. Although cracks and pot-holes are not widely prevalent, yet some sub-sections are heavily cracked and need immediate maintenance. Based on the deflection data, overlays are designed for 5 yr's, 10 yr's and 15yr's projected traffic. The cost of rehabilitation needs is calculated as per the U.P, P.W.D. schedule of rates. Similarly cost of maintenance needs is also calculated. Based on the economic analysis and pavement condition, priorities are fixed for maintenance and rehabilitation needs of different test sections. Finally, it has been recommended that continuous monitoring of roads around Roorkee should be done to assess M & R needs and to suggest appropriate remedial measures to be taken for efficient traffic flow and low vehicle operating cost (VOC).