Roads

Code:

L.EC025

Acronym:

VC

Keywords
Classification	Keyword
OFICIAL	Transport Infrastructures

Instance: 2023/2024 - 1S

Active?	Yes
Responsible unit:	Department of Civil and Georesources Engineering
Course/CS Responsible:	Bachelor in Civil Engineering

Cycles of Study/Courses

Acronym	No. of Students	Study Plan	Curricular Years	Credits UCN	Credits ECTS	Contact hours	Total Time
L.EC	168	Syllabus	3	-	6	45,5	162

Teaching language

Portuguese

Objectives

The main objective of this course is to provide to the students the main skills in the field of highway design, supplying all the necessary elements to conduct a geometric design, the consequent impacts at the level of the earthworks and the basic elements to understand the behaviour of the pavements and materials involved.

Learning outcomes and competences

The assignment will provide the students the practice on highway design taking into account the efficiency of operation, economical aspects and environmental impacts. The main aim of the course can be divided in several learning objectives:

• Acquire critical understanding of the design approach to develop original solutions through the knowledge of the basis of road engineering.
• Identify, evaluate and apply different methods and practices for support the design.
• Critical analysis of different design solutions, to process, to describe and to show the quantitative/qualitative information.

Working method

Presencial

Pre-requirements (prior knowledge) and co-requirements (common knowledge)

Basic knowledge of physics and mathematics, in particular geometry and trigonometry.

Program

Highways context

• Scale - National (main roads), Regional (roads), Urban (Hierarchization);
• Life cycle – design, construction and operation;
• Geometric design (main elements and design stages)

The vehicle

• Movement equation
• Dynamic and physical characteristics of the vehicle
• Adherence

Highway design

• Horizontal alignment (tangents and compound curves)
• Vertical alignment (tangents and vertical curves)
• Constrains to the full design
• Cross section
• Pavements

Earthworks

• Areas and volumes
• Soil distribution
• Bruckner graph

 

 

Mandatory literature

J.A.E.; Normas do Traçado

Complementary Bibliography

A.A.S.H.T.O.; A Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets, 2001

Teaching methods and learning activities

Theoretical classes will be based on the oral presentation of themes of the course supported by slides. Theoretical-practical classes will be based on problem solving and the development of a partial highway design, where students can apply the concepts that have been taught.

The adopted teaching methodologies are based on the presentation of the themes and their principles, showing case studies in which the taught concepts are used and practical applied by conducting a road design with reference to Portuguese standards and international best practices. The fundamental concepts are the knowledge needed to support the basis for design, comprehension and critical analysis of highway design. Additionally, after providing the basic skills the more detailed information of the practical design technique is learned in practice

Evaluation Type

Distributed evaluation with final exam

Assessment Components

Designation	Weight (%)
Exame	70,00
Teste	30,00
Total:	100,00

Amount of time allocated to each course unit

Designation	Time (hours)
Frequência das aulas	45,50
Total:	45,50

Eligibility for exams

Achieving final classification requires compliance with attendance at the course unit, according to the LEC assessment rules. It is considered that students meet the attendance requirements if, having been regularly enrolled, the number of absences of 25% for classroom lessons is not exceeded.

 

Calculation formula of final grade

CF = Máx {0,70*EX + 0,30*TI; EX}

CF – Final classification

EX - Classification of exam

TI- Classification of the individual assignment (Vehicle and Horizontal Alignement)

Individual assignment is optional. If the student fail this assignement, the assessment component associated with TI will be integrated into the exam.