Highway Engineering Tips for Fundamentals of Engineering Exam

Highway Engineering deals with how to design, maintain, construct, and operate roads, tunnels, and bridges. Romans were the first people to start road construction. But nowadays, there are vehicles which run with the power of a 100 horses. So, roads also have to be built to balance and manage the latest vehicles.

Only when people are able to be mobile, they are able to go to different parts of the city or country. This mobility helps the public in their professions, personal life, recreation, and entertainment. So, designing good highways has a social and economic impact. If the highways are improperly designed it leads to accidents, water and air pollution, cultural disruption, too much of noise generation, and other such issues. An engineer who knows the Fundamentals of Engineering, appreciates the importance of transportation and highway design.

The design of Highways in USA is based upon the standards set by the following organizations:

• American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials
• Institute of Transportation Engineers
• Transportation Research Board
• Department of Transportation
• Federal Highway Administration

An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) has to be performed before building a highway. This assessment will include the following:

Identifying what kind of impacts will be there in nature and social-economic environment

• Impacts have to be quantified and evaluated
• If there are any signs of the worst impacts, then measures must be listed to avoid and manage the worst impacts

EIA is important for engineers appearing for Fundamentals of Engineering Exam. Highway Safety aims to reduce the number of road accidents and deaths. The design of the highway is very important to ensure safety. The following factors have to be taken into account while designing a highway. They are:

• Shape
• Location
• Alignment

The interaction between roads, human beings, and vehicles has to be considered during the design phase. How human beings apply brakes and steer, how well they are able to see traffic signals, and how they follow cars are also important design factors. While deciding the width of the roads and slopes, the size of vehicles and how they move about will be considered. So the various design considerations include the following:

• Sight Distance
• Alignment, super-elevation, and grades
• Cross section
• Lane width
• Horizontal and vertical clearance
• Design speed
• Design traffic volume
• Number of lanes
• Level of Service (LOS)

The two common types of pavement surfaces are:

• Portland cement concrete (PCC)
• Hot-mix asphalt (HMA)

Pavements are designed as either flexible or rigid systems. Flexible pavements are made up of hot-mix asphalts and they are flexible because they bend under pressure. Rigid pavements are constructed using Portland Cement Concrete. Airports and Interstate Highways are built as rigid pavements.

As a Civil Engineer who has taken the Fundamentals of Engineering Exam Prep to pass your FE Exam, you must be well versed with the various road safety design methods for building safe and effective roads and highways.