Page 60 - Lecture Notes DCC3113

CONSTRUCTION OF FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT

4.1 THE CONSTRUCTION OF ROAD PAVEMENT

Pavement is the structure which separates the tyres of vehicles from the underlying
foundation material. Pavement grants friction for the vehicles thus providing comfort to the driver
and transfers the traffic load from the upper surface to the natural soil.

In earlier times before the vehicular traffic became most regular, cobblestone paths were
much familiar for animal carts and on foot traffic load. Storm water drainage and environmental
conditions are a major concern in the designing of a pavement. The roads of the earlier times
depended solely on stone, gravel and sand for construction and water was used as a binding agent to
level and give a finished look to the surface.

All hard road pavements usually fall into two broad categories namely
 Flexible Pavement
 Rigid Pavement

Figure 4-1: Types of road construction

(b) Flexible pavement (a) Rigid pavement

Figure 4-2: Response of different pavement types to load

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