Abstract

GARCIA-RAMIREZ, Yasmany. Truck Escape Ramps in Roads: A New Procedure to Justify its Need and Estimate its Location. Rev Politéc. (Quito) [online]. 2022, vol.49, n.2, pp.17-26. ISSN 2477-8990.  https://doi.org/10.33333/rp.vol49n2.02.

Truck drivers on steep downgrades can lose control of the vehicle from overheating the brake system. Given this possibility, truck escape ramps stop those errant vehicles, reducing fatality and property damage. The AASHTO makes recommendations without showing an analytical procedure to justify their need or estimate their location. In Chile, a method that tries to cover that gap has limited application and updating concerns. Therefore, this study proposes a new procedure to justify the truck escape ramps on roads and estimate their location. This procedure includes the recent updates in the Grade Severity Rating System (GSRS). The GSRS system allows estimating the maximum safe speed on downgrades. A detailed calculation example was employed to explain the new procedure. The proposed procedure solves the limitations of the proposal of Chile and completes the recommendations given by the AASHTO. In addition, it offers a theoretical basis, easy to apply, for countries where this type of infrastructure has not been built yet.

Keywords : truck escape ramp; GSRS; need and location; new procedure.

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