Grade Separated Intersection

Lecture notes in Traffic Engineering And Management

Date: August 5, 2014

Contents
 Overview
 Classification of Intersection
o Grade Separated Intersection
o Classification of Grade Separated Intersection
o Design Components
 Grade separated intersections
 Summary
 References
 Acknowledgments

Overview
An intersection is the area shared by the joining or crossing of two
or more roads. Since the main function of an intersection is to
enable the road user to make a route choice, it is a point of
decision. Hence the problems that are encountered by the motorist
while passing through an intersection must be recognized and the
design should be in such a way that the driving task is as simple as
possible.

Intersection is also a point of large number of major conflicts,

besides a point of decision. These conflicts may be due to the
crossing maneuvers of vehicles moving in different directions. Good
intersection design results from a minimization of the magnitude
and characteristics of the conflicts and a simplification of driver
route selection process.

Classification of Intersection
Intersections are classified depending upon the treatment of
crossing conflicts as follows (i) At Grade Intersection and (ii) Grade
Separated Intersection.

Grade Separated Intersection

It is a bridge that eliminates crossing conflicts at intersections by
vertical separation of roadways in space. Grade separated
intersection are otherwise known as Interchanges. Grade separated
intersections cause less hazard and delay than grade intersections.
Route transfer at grade separations is accommodated by
interchange facilities consisting of ramps. Interchange ramps are
classified as Direct, Semi-Direct and Indirect. Interchanges are
described by the patterns of the various turning roadways or ramps.
The interchange configurations are designed in such a way to
accommodate economically the traffic requirements of flow,
operation on the crossing facilities, physical requirements of the
topography, adjoining land use, type of controls, right-of-way and
direction of movements.

The ultimate objective of grade separated intersections is to

eliminate all grade crossing conflicts and to accommodate other
intersecting maneuvers by merging, diverging and weaving at low
relative speed. The relative speed of the conflicting vehicle streams
is an important factor affecting the significance of a conflict. The
benefit of providing for low relative speed is twofold. First, events
unfold more slowly allowing more judgement time and second, in
case of an impact the total relative energy to be absorbed are less
and hence, the damage is less. In addition, when relative speed is
low, the average motorist will accept a smaller time gap space
between successive vehicles to complete his move. This condition
increases roadway capacity.

Classification of Grade Separated Intersection

One of the distinctions made in type of interchange is between the
directional and the non directional interchange. Directional
interchanges are those having ramps that tend to follow the natural
direction of movement. Non directional interchanges require a
change in the natural path of traffic flow. A comprehensive
classification plan for grade separated intersection design which
includes all possible geometric patterns has not yet been developed.
The design and operational characteristics of each of the major
interchange types are mentioned as follows and are discussed in the
following sections.

1. Underpass
2. Overpass
3. Trumpet Interchange
4. Diamond Interchange
5. Cloverleaf Interchange
6. Partial Cloverleaf Interchange
7. Directional Interchange
8. Bridged Rotary

Underpass

An underpass or a tunnel is an underground passageway,

completely enclosed except for openings for ingress and egress,
commonly at each end. A tunnel may be for foot or vehicular road
traffic, for rail traffic. If an underpass is constructed for pedestrians
and/or cyclists beneath a road or railway, allowing them to reach
the other side in safety, then such a construction is termed as a
Subway. These are constructed when it is necessary for pedestrians
to cross a railroad or a limited-access highway. Subways may also
be constructed for the benefit of wildlife

Overpass

An overpass also known as a flyover, is a bridge, road, railway or

similar structure that crosses over another road or railway. A
pedestrian overpass allows pedestrians safe crossing over busy
roads without impacting traffic. And Railway overpasses are used to
replace at-grade crossing as a safer alternative. Overpasses allows
for unobstructed rail traffic flow from mixing with vehicular and
pedestrian traffic. Stack interchanges are made up of many
overpasses.
Trumpet Interchange

Trumpet interchanges have been used where one highway

terminates at another highway. These involve at least one loop
ramp connecting traffic either entering or leaving the terminating
expressway with the far lanes of the continuous highway. These
interchanges are useful for highways as well as toll roads, as they
concentrate all entering and exiting traffic into a single stretch of
roadway, where toll booths can be installed. Trumpets are suitable
at the locations where the side road exists on only one side of the
freeway, and traffic is relatively low. Each entrance and exit consists
of acceleration or deceleration lanes at each end. It requires only
one bridge and is the most traditional way of grade separating a
three way junction. The principal advantages are low construction
cost and are useful for highways as well as toll roads. But the
limitations in employing trumpet interchanges are it leaves a
redundant patch of the land within the loop, Disorienting to navigate
for those driving in the direction that uses the loop. Moreover
scaling down the interchange often results in a more dangerous
suffers congestion from articulated lorries that have tipped over.
Diamond Interchange

The diamond Interchange is the simplest form of grade separated

intersection between two roadways. The conflicts between through
and crossing traffic are eliminated by a bridge structure. This
particular intersection has four one way ramps which are essentially
parallel to the major artery. The left turn crossing movement
conflicts are considerably reduced by eliminating the conflict with
the traffic in opposite direction. All the remaining left turn conflicts,
merging and diverging maneuver conflicts take place at the terminal
point of each ramp. Limitation in application of this design depends
on the operations of these terminals. So, it is suitable for locations
where the volume of left turn traffic is relatively low.

The diamond interchange requires a minimum amount of land and is

economical to construct. Also,a diamond interchange generally
requires less out-of-the-way travel and vehicle operating costs are
less than those on most other types of interchanges. The single
point of exit from the major roadway eases the problem of signing.
This type of interchange requires the least of right-of-way. With
these advantages, the diamonds appear to be the ideal solution to
an intersection problem. But there might be chances of occurrence
of conflicts at the locations where ramps meet the grade separated
cross street are to be considered foe high ramp volumes. Improper
design of signal timings at cross streets may result in the
inadequacy of capacity for certain flows.

Cloverleaf Interchange

The full clover interchange eliminates all crossing movement

conflicts by the use of weaving sections. This weaving section is a
critical element of cloverleaf design. It replaces a crossing conflict
with a merging, followed some distance farther by a diverging
conflict. There are two points of entry and exit on each through
roadway. The first exit is provided before the cross road structure
allows right turn movements. The second exit, immediately after
the cross road structure, allows for left turn movements. A weaving
section is created between the exit and entry points near the
structure. Sufficient length and capacity is to be provided to allow
for a smooth merging and diverging operation.

Cloverleaf design requires only one bridge. In this respect, it is the

cheapest form providing for elimination of all crossing maneuvers at
grade. Although full cloverleaf interchanges eliminate the
undesirable crossing movements of diamond interchanges, they
have the disadvantages of greater travel distances, higher operating
costs, difficult merging sections, circuity of travel, large areas for
loops, sight distances to exits at the other side of the bridge,
confusion caused by turning right to go left and large rights-of-way
occasioned by the radius requirements necessary for satisfactory
speeds on the ramps.

A variation of the cloverleaf configuration is the cloverleaf with

collector-distributor roads. With the collector-distributor roadway,
main roadway operations are much the same as in diamond
interchange. For each direction of travel, there is a single point for
exits and a single point for entrances. Speed change, detailed exit
directional signing and the storage and weaving problems
associated with a cloverleaf are transferred to the collector-
distributor road, which can be designed to accommodate greater
relative speed differences or encourage smaller ones. Although this
configuration improves the operational characteristics of a cloverleaf
interchange, the disadvantages of greater travel distances and the
requirement of extra right-of-way are still present. The use of a
cloverleaf with collector-distributor roads is appropriate at junctions
between a freeway and an expressway where a diamond
interchange would not adequately serve traffic demand.

Partial Cloverleaf Interchange

This is another variation of the cloverleaf configuration. Partial

clover leaf or parclo is a modification that combines some elements
of a diamond interchange with one or more loops of a cloverleaf to
eliminate only the more critical turning conflicts. This is the most
popular freeway -to- arterial interchange. Parclo is usually employed
when crossing roads on the secondary road will not produce
objectionable amounts of hazard and delay. It provides more
acceleration and deceleration space on the freeway.

Directional Interchange

A Directional interchange provides direct paths for left turns. These

interchanges contain ramps for one or more direct or semi direct left
turning movements. Interchanges of two freeways or interchanges
with one or more very heavy turning movements usually warrant
direct ramps, which have higher speeds of operation and higher
capacities, compared to loop ramps. Some designers do not favor
entrance of merging traffic in the left lane, which is a characteristic
of most direct-connection bridges. The principal limitations of this
type of interchange is higher cost of construction and requirement
relatively large amount of land when compared to the diamond
interchanges and in some cases than cloverleaf interchange. Various
combinations of directional, semi directional and loop ramps may be
appropriate for certain conditions. They are the basic patterns that
use the least space, have the fewest or least complex structures,
minimize internal weaving and appropriate for the common terrain
and traffic conditions.
Design Components
Acceleration Lane

An acceleration lane is defined as extra pavement, of constant or

variable width, placed parallel or nearly so, to a merging maneuver
area to encourage merging at low relative speed. The major
difference in opinion concerning acceleration design stems from lack
of information on driver performance. Field observations have
indicated that drivers desire to follow the direct path even though
extra width or tapered section is provided. The length of
acceleration lanes are determined by two factors: (1) Time required
for drivers to accelerate to the speed of the preferential flow from
the speed of entry into the acceleration lane and (2) Maneuvering
time required as a supplement to the sight distance which is
provided in advance of the acceleration lane. Taper distances are
based upon a lateral transition time of about 1/3 sec/ft of
displacement.
Figure 1: Different forms of Acceleration lanes Figure 2: details of length of acceleration lane

Deceleration Lanes

Deceleration lanes are defined as extra pavement of constant or

variable width, placed parallel or nearly so, to a diverging maneuver
area to encourage diverging at low relative speed. The lengths of
deceleration lanes are based on the difference in the speed of traffic
of the combined flow (in advance of the collision area) and the
speed at which drivers negotiate the critical diverging channel
curve, as well as the deceleration practices of drivers. These
deceleration lane lengths are based on the assumed performance of
passenger vehicles only. Extra allowance must be made for grades
and for trucks with different deceleration characteristics. In the
figure below, Form A design is more economical when large speed
differentials are to be overcome. Form B could be advantageous by
contrasting pavement colors and Form C design is more convenient
for drivers when small speed differentials are to be eliminated.

Figure 3: Different forms of Deceleration lanes Figure 4: details of length of deceleration lane
Grade separated intersections
As we discussed earlier, grade-separated intersections are provided
to separate the traffic in the vertical grade. But the traffic need not
be those pertaining to road only. When a railway line crosses a
road, then also grade separators are used. Different types of grade-
separators are flyovers and interchange. Flyovers itself are
subdivided into overpass and underpass. When two roads cross at a
point, if the road having major traffic is elevated to a higher grade
for further movement of traffic, then such structures are called
overpass. Otherwise, if the major road is depressed to a lower level
to cross another by means of an under bridge or tunnel, it is called
under-pass.

Interchange is a system where traffic between two or more

roadways flows at different levels in the grade separated junctions.
Common types of interchange include trumpet interchange,
diamond interchange , and cloverleaf interchange.

1. Trumpet interchange: Trumpet interchange is a popular

form of three leg interchange. If one of the legs of the
interchange meets a highway at some angle but does not cross
it, then the interchange is called trumpet interchange. A typical
layout of trumpet interchange is shown in figure 5.

Figure 5: Trumpet interchange

2. Diamond interchange: Diamond interchange is a popular
form of four-leg interchange found in the urban locations
where major and minor roads crosses. The important feature
of this interchange is that it can be designed even if the major
road is relatively narrow. A typical layout of diamond
interchange is shown in figure 6.

Figure 6: Diamond interchange

3. Clover leaf interchange: It is also a four leg interchange and

is used when two highways of high volume and speed intersect
each other with considerable turning movements. The main
advantage of cloverleaf intersection is that it provides
complete separation of traffic. In addition, high speed at
intersections can be achieved. However, the disadvantage is
that large area of land is required. Therefore, cloverleaf
interchanges are provided mainly in rural areas. A typical
layout of this type of interchange is shown in figure 7.
 Figure 7: Cloverleaf interchange

Summary
Traffic intersections are problem spots on any highway, which
contribute to a large share of accidents. For safe operation, these
locations should be kept under some level of control depending
upon the traffic quantity and behavior. Based on this, intersections
and interchanges are constructed, the different types of which were
discussed in the chapter.

References
1. A policy on geometric design of rural highways, 2019.
2. Everett C Carter and Wolfgang S Homburger. Introduction to
Transportation Engineering. Reston Publishers, Virginia, 2019.
3. L. R Kadiyali. Traffic Engineering and Transportation Planning.
Khanna Publishers, New Delhi, 1987.
4. Theodore M Matson, Wilbure S smith, and Fredric W Hurd.
Traffic engineering, 1955.

Acknowledgments
I wish to thank several of my students and staff of NPTEL for their
contribution in this lecture.