The Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) Gravel Roads Maintenance Design Manual details how to best maintain unpaved roads in your municipality. First and foremost, maintaining the road's shape is critical to the health of any gravel road. As the guide explains, "In order to maintain a gravel road properly, operators must clearly Gravel Road Maintenance Companion Guide 1-3 Chapter 1 Grading Procedures 1.1 Safety First—Procedures Prevention of accidents is dependent on the operator. Manufacturers incorporate features to make the operator's job safer and easier however, a careful operator is the best safety device. In order to help prevent accidents the following safety The purpose of this manual is to provide clear and helpful information for maintaining gravel roads. Very little technical help is available to small agencies that are responsible for managing these roads. Gravel road maintenance has traditionally been "more of an art than a science" and very few formal standards exist. road networks and the geometric design are considered to be beyond the scope of this manual and are not discussed in any detail. These are covered in greater detail in DRTT (1989). 1.2 Definitions Unpaved roads may be divided into earth tracks, earth roads or gravel roads. Earth tracks are the simplest "low volume roads" and generally AsperAASHTO'Fortheaggregatesurfaced(Gravel)roads(usedformany countyand forestroads), the maximum traffic level considered is 100,000 ESAL applications' and "The practical minimum traffic levelthat canbe considered for any Gravel Road Design & Maintenance Planning Josh Platt President, Maine Environmental Solutions LLC In Partnership With Kennebec County Gravel road maintenance plans have proven to be the best investment a group can make in their gravel road. The newly-revised "Gravel Roads Construction & Maintenance Guide" was produced in a joint effort by the Federal Highway Administration and SDLTAP. This manual serves as an invaluable resource for local agency officials, managers, and motor grader operators who are responsible for designing and maintaining gravel surfaced roads. Gravel roads require much more frequent maintenance than paved roads, especially after wet periods and when accommodating increased traffic. Wheel motion shoves material to the outside (as well as in-between travelled lanes), leading to rutting, reduced water-runoff, and eventual road destruction if unchecked. The maintenance of gravel roads varies widely from one nation to another, let alone within the same nation. Although the gravel road maintenance market has several manuals (1, 2, 3), none is comprehensive in nature and most are region specific. This new manual is developed to address all aspects of gravel roads maintenance, rehabilitation, and www.idot.illinois.gov Gravel roads : maintenance and design manual [Ken Skorseth] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers.