Sustainability rating system for highway design:—A key focus for developing sustainable cities and societies in Nigeria

Abstract

• The use of thirty-six (36) sustainability indicators, and certification award level in assessing highway design is proposed for Nigeria transport development. • The aim is to reduce climate change catastrophe associated with transport project development. • Findings revealed a systematic benefit of using a sustainability assessment rating system to bridge the sustainability literacy gap, between theory and practice in Nigeria. • This research provides the first comprehensive assessment to adopt sustainability assessment in highway design in Nigeria. • The implication of this research in the field of knowledge is to strengthen the idea by drawing insight into the environmental challenges and a need for the adoption of design sustainability implementation. A growing body of evidence suggests that continuous increases in global population and urbanisation wield pressure across biodiversity. Nigeria and a few other Asian nations will account for 35% of the urban increase in the future, and there is a scientific projection that further megacities will emerge. Besides, sustainable cities and societies are those that strive to leave a net-zero carbon footprint through smart urban planning and city management. So, in developing public transport scheme, it is essential to manage and implement sustainability assessment performance. In Nigeria, there is a sustainability literacy gap, due to a lack of measurable sustainability techniques, and this has resulted in social, economic and environmental dissatisfaction towards completed highways and roads in the cities. The roads and highways are considered an essential part of modern daily life and will play a key role in the development of sustainable cities. To bridge the knowledge gap, this study argues to develop a sustainability assessment rating system in evaluating highway and road designs in Nigeria. Thirty-six (36) sustainability indicators relevant in assessing highway design are identified along with the sustainability application framework. The findings contribute to gaining insight into climate change impact, and the benefits it makes in adopting an assessment rating system in highway development to decrease climate change catastrophe.