Spanish Highways Research Articles

“Spain is a Contradiction”: Katharine Lee Bates’ Quest for Modernity in Spanish Highways and Byways

ABSTRACT This article explores Katharine Lee Bates’ travel book Spanish Highways and Byways (1900), written out of a collection of commissioned articles published in the New York Times immediately after the Spanish-American War. Her travelogue not only provides the reader with details about the Spanish architectural and natural landscape, but it also works as an instructive text to comment on the social and political panorama of Spain at a time of national crisis. Following the path initiated by Alberto Egea in “Rewriting Stereotypes on Spain: Unveiling the Counter-Picturesque in Katharine Lee Bates” (2019), I argue that Spanish Highways and Byways describes the creation of an emerging modern Spain, influenced by the intellectual movements that shaped Spanish politics of the fin-du-siècle. Bates’ text is key to understand the Spanish-American War and its effects on the Spanish population; more importantly, it shows the author’s engagement in aspects such as the education of women or workers’ rights. In my discussion, I examine how Bates negotiates with her position as an American outsider in Spain and how she takes advantage of this position to build bridges between the two nations at a time of conflict.t

Automatic Design of the Horizontal Alignment of a Road Interchange: The Case of a Trumpet-Type

This paper investigated the automatic design of road interchanges in the framework of mathematical optimization. To introduce the approach, we focused on a trumpet-type interchange, and specifically on S-type and loop ramps. By analyzing all geometric elements, we propose a geometrical model that provides, from an appropriate decision vector, a complete parametrization of the ramps. We established safety and spatial constraints (including restrictions on passage through forbidden areas) and formulated a nonlinear optimization problem, the numerical solution of which gives the design of the interchange ramps. The goodness of the model and the accuracy of the method proposed for its numerical resolution was checked using an academic problem designed so that its solution can be analyzed easily. Finally, the practical usefulness of this methodology was shown in a real case study, redesigning an existing interchange on a Spanish highway.

Trafik ve Yol Yüzeyi Özelliklerinin Katmanlı Kaplamaların Elastik Davranışına Etkisi

In this paper the overall elastic properties of different layered road pavements have been presented. Using micromechanical theory and the Voigt/Reuss and Hashin-Shtrikman bounds, all the elastic moduli that characterize the stiffness of the composite medium are determined. Following the Spanish Highway Administration classification of the pavement sections, this work presents in detail the effective elastic behavior of any of the cases covered by this document from their composition and the type of traffic. Although numerous experimental and laboratory works have been developed to study the mechanisms that govern different types of pavements, there are few works where they are explicitly determined. That is why the main novelty of this work consists in presenting analytical methods capable of quantifying the performance of the pavement based on the materials that compose it and the traffic loads to which it is subjected. The proposed scheme is implemented in some scenarios by showing the dependence of the different elastic modulus on the volume fraction of the different materials that made the layered composite pavement.

Environmentally assisted fatigue failure of a structural bolted-joint connection

The paper addresses the analysis of the failure detected during a routine service inspection in an overhead porticoed structure for traffic signaling installed across the major north–south Spanish highway. The failure, which occurred after more than 30 years of service, consisted of the partial or full loosening of the bolts from the middle-span bolted joint and warned of a structural collapse. The failure analysis is based on the structural design data provided by the Spanish supervising authority for road and transportation and on exhaustive research regarding the structural integrity condition of the bolts removed from the dismantled joint. The experiments performed with the bolt material involve mechanical properties, fracture behavior with respect to the failure criterion of Eurocode 3 and fatigue resistance determination. These are accompanied by fractographic study and microstructural analysis of the bolts broken in-service. The analysis indicates that failure originated from environmentally induced fatigue initiators due to the environment aggressiveness and the galvanized condition of the bolts. The combination of these two factors caused local damage and weakening at the steel interface, after dissolution and microcracking of the Zn-coating protection.

Calibration of inertial consistency models on North Carolina two-lane rural roads

Road crash occurrence is closely related to the geometric design consistency, which can be defined as how drivers’ expectancies and road behavior fit. To this regard, the crash rate on a road segment increases as its consistency level decreases.To assess this phenomenon, inertial consistency models were recently developed. These models are based on the difference between the inertial operating speed, which represents drivers’ expectancies, and the operating speed, which represents road behavior. The higher the difference between both speeds, the higher the likelihood of crash occurrence.This research aims to validate and calibrate these consistency models on American two-lane rural roads. For this, a total of 194 homogeneous road segments and 977 horizontal curves along 665 km in North Carolina (US) were used.As a result, the geometric design consistency was identified as a major factor of crash occurrence. The higher the difference between drivers’ expectancies and road behavior, the higher the crash rate. Likewise, the greater the consistency level, the greater the percentage of horizontal curves without reported crashes.A Safety Performance Function was also calibrated to estimate the number of crashes on a road segment. Consistency thresholds were defined and tested to identify where these crashes are more likely to take place.Finally, the results obtained in this study were compared with those obtained previously on Spanish highways. To this regard, the crash rate on an American highway was 1.85 times greater than those observed on a Spanish highway under the same risk exposure and consistency conditions.Therefore, different tools were developed to enhance the assessment of road safety to the geometric design of both new two-lane rural roads and improvements of existing highways.

Highway and Road Probabilistic Safety Assessment Based on Bayesian Network Models

AbstractA Bayesian network model is developed, in which all the items or safety related elements encountered when traveling along a highway or road, such as terrain, infrastructure, light signals, speed limit signs, intersections, roundabouts, curves, tunnels, viaducts, and any other safety relevant elements are reproduced. Since human error is the main cause of accidents, special attention is given to modeling the driver behavior variables (driver's tiredness and attention) and to how they evolve with time or travel length. The sets of conditional probabilities of variables given their parents, which permit to quantify the Bayesian network joint probability, are obtained and written as closed formulas, which allow us to identify the particular contribution of each variable to safety and facilitate the computer implementation of the proposed method. In particular, the probabilities of incidents affecting safety are calculated so that a probabilistic safety assessment of the road can be done and its most critical elements can be identified and sorted by importance. This permits the improvement of road safety making adequate corrections to save time and money in the maintenance program by concentrating on the most critical elements and effective investments. Some real examples of a Spanish highway and a conventional road are provided to illustrate the proposed methodology and show its advantages and performance.

Effect of lime on stabilization of phyllite clays

This paper represents a new advance in the study of engineering properties and material applications of phyllite clays. Considering their potential use as construction materials for structures subjected to low stress levels, this laboratory research investigated the stabilization and improvement in engineering properties of a Spanish phyllite clay achieved by the addition of 3, 5 and 7wt.% lime. Geotechnical properties investigated include the consistency limits, compaction, California Bearing Ratio, swelling potential and water-permeability. The phyllite clay–lime mixtures had good compaction properties and very to extremely low permeability-coefficient values, with a semi-logarithmic correlation between increasing permeability and increasing proportion of lime additive. The addition of 3wt.% lime was sufficient to reach the index of capacity amble specified in the Sheet of Technical General Prescriptions for Works of Roads and Bridges PG–3 (Spanish Highways Agency, 2008), significantly reducing the plasticity index value, with the compacted mixture undergoing no swelling under soakage. The required pavement thicknesses for the raw phyllite–clay material and the phyllite clay–lime mixtures are compared and discussed. Potential applications for phyllite clay–lime mixtures include for pavements/road subgrade, earth construction, building materials and for impermeabilization purposes.

Operational Impact of Horizontal and Vertical Alignment of Two-Lane Highways

The Highway Capacity Manual (HCM) defines the level-of-service criteria for two-lane highways based on three performance measures: average travel speed (ATS), percent time spend following (PTSF) and percent of free-flow speed (PFFS). The performance measures are affected by the lack of passing opportunities, which is quantified through adjustment factors depending on the percentage of no passing zones. Passing zones are provided where available sight distance is greater than the minimum passing sight distance; and their length and frequency depend mainly on the physical constrains and cost limitations. HCM current evaluation of traffic performance excludes horizontal alignment variations, which could produce more or less sinuous alignments and thus affect potentially to both average travel speed and percentage time spent following. Moreover, HCM considers terrain type rather than the actual vertical profile, which could overestimate or underestimate the expected traffic performance depending on how accurately the roadway was adapted to the terrain. The objective of the research is to analyze the relationship between highway horizontal alignment, characterized by curvature change rate (CCR), highway vertical alignment, characterized by the gradient change rate, and traffic performance, based on ATS and PTSF. For the research, 25 Spanish two-lane rural highways were selected. Horizontal geometry was obtained from Google Earth using an azimuth-based restitution program. CCR was calculated and used to identify homogenous segments. Vertical alignment was recreated from GPS data. The sample included 112 homogeneous segments and 451 passing zones. After the geometry-based characterization, 20 homogeneous segments were introduced and simulated in the TWOPAS simulation model. TWOPAS was previously calibrated and validated with passing maneuvers data from Spanish highways. Traffic conditions (directional traffic volume, directional split and percentage of heavy vehicles) were varied. The analysis of the simulation results provided models of PTSF and ATS depending on CCR and gradient change rate, among other parameters. The results of this research will help highway designers and practitioners to predict operational performance based on CCR, type of gradient and expected hourly traffic volume, and could be used as management and design criteria.

Quantity of CO2 Emissions in the Life Cycle of a Highway Infrastructure

AbstractThe complexity of climate change and its evolution during the last few years has a positive impact on new developments and approaches to reduce the emissions of CO2. Looking for a methodology to evaluate the sustainability of a roadway, a tool has been developed. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is being accepted by the road industry to measure and evaluate the environmental impacts of an infrastructure, as the energy consumption and carbon footprint. This paper describes the methodology to calculate the CO2 emissions associated with the energy embodied on a roadway along its life cycle, including construction, operations and demolition. It will assist to find solutions to improve the energy footprint and reduce the amount of CO2 emissions. Details are provided of both, the methodology and the data acquisition. This paper is an application of the methodology to the Spanish highways, using a local database. Two case studies and a practical example are studied to show the model as a decision support for sustainable construction in the road industry.

Deriving Traffic Flow Patterns from Historical Data

The development and decreased cost of technology and communications have brought about a huge increase in the availability of traffic data. With every passing day, traffic management centers must deal with an increased amount of detailed data. Once the real time use of these data is complete, they must be stored for long periods of time. In this long-term context, the vast amount of raw data is meaningless, which is a clear example of data asphyxiation. Traffic management centers must aggregate and synthesize the data to extract the maximum information from them. Pattern classification is a way to deal with this issue. Traditionally, traffic demand patterns have been easily constructed using ad hoc methods, where the experience and judgment of the analyst are their main attribute. These procedures lack the required rigor to support current needs in terms of planning and operational management. This paper proposes a quantitative method to systematically derive traffic demand patterns from historical data. The method is based on the cluster analysis technique and allows for the inclusion of preexisting knowledge, which eases the interpretation and practical use of the results. The proposed pattern classification procedure is applied to 5 years of hourly traffic volumes on a Spanish highway. The obtained results prove the validity and utility of the method in accurately summarizing the seasonal and daily characteristics of traffic demand.

Different landscaping integration techniques in roads. Analysis of efficacy through public perception

In the present work the objective is to analyze the landscaping integration measures commonly used in Spanish highways. In order to achieve this objective a review of main normative, scientific documentation, guidelines and handbooks in this framework was carried out. Furthermore, a photographic inventory and a survey aimed at knowing the public perception of different road landscaping techniques were done. The survey results analysis allowed us to identify key environmental variables in highway landscaping, adequate design techniques and the efficacy of the landscaping measures studied.

Proposal for the integration of sustainability criteria in civil engineering projects: a case study

In this paper an indicator system is proposed for assessing sustainability in linear infrastructure projects from early stages (previous analysis of alternatives) to allow classification of the different alternatives according to their impact on the environment, society and economy, and thus to select the most sustainable alternative. It is developed a brief study of the state of knowledge on sustainable construction worldwide and, according to existing initiatives, it is proposed the sustainability assessment of infrastructure projects using a set of criteria and indicators. The indicator system is also applied to a case study, a Spanish highway, through a multi-criteria analysis, to identify existing constraints to the implementation of sustainability criteria from early stages considering the project life cycle, taking into account the interest of controlling and monitoring the indicator valuation in later stages and their possible application in the comparison between projects.

Evaluation of the influence of toll systems on energy consumption and CO2 emissions: A case study of a Spanish highway

This paper studies the energy consumption and subsequent CO2 emissions of road highway transportation under three toll systems in Spain for four categories of vehicles: cars, vans, buses and articulated trucks. The influence of toll systems is tested for a section of AP-41 highway between Toledo and Madrid. One system is free flow, other is traditional stop and go and the last toll system operates with an electronic toll collection (ETC) technology. Energy consumption and CO2 emissions were found to be closely related to vehicle mass, wind exposure, engine efficiency and acceleration rate. These parameters affect, directly or indirectly, the external forces which determine the energy consumption. Reducing the magnitude of these forces through an appropriate toll management is an important way of improving the energy performance of vehicles. The type of toll system used can have a major influence on the energy efficiency of highway transportation and therefore it is necessary to consider free flow.

Mental load and loss of control over speed in real driving.

Relationships between attention and speed control are analysed. The demands of speed control are derived from subjective appreciation of the traffic environment and from the need to adapt to legal restrictions. Drivers check the speedometer more or less frequently and also use their subjective speed perception while looking ahead. It is hypothesised that, in absence of specific speed restrictions, drivers choose an optimum preferred speed so that the attentional effort dedicated to speed control is minimised but with explicit speed restrictions additional resources are required to keep speed under control including more glances to the speedometer. If a secondary task needs attention the speed control is affected and the speed tends to return to the optimal preferred level. Twelve participants drove about 200 km in a Spanish highway under eight conditions: two speedometer states (visible/concealed) × two speed instructions (free/restricted between 90 and 100 km/h) × two workload states (normal driving/performing a mental task). The results demonstrated: (a) that under free speed the drivers choice was 11 km/h faster than in the restricted-speed condition, indicating that the speed instructions were effective and operated as a speed limit. (b) When a mental task was performed the speed increased independently of the speedometer availability under restricted speed but not in the free speed condition, what clearly supports the stated hypothesis. The role of the speedometer in speed control, its relations with endogenous distraction and its implications for driving are analysed.

Permit Vehicle Routing Using Reliability-Based Evaluation Procedures

The works carried out within the framework of the development of an automatic system for permit vehicle routing on the Spanish National Highway network are described. The focus is on the methodology adopted for analysis of the old existing bridges. Because information about bridge properties (geometry, material strength) and design live load is unknown, the evaluation procedure combines the information provided by in situ measurements and inspection with a reliability-based evaluation. The reliability index for the most critical limit states derived from the maximum effects due to actual traffic on the bridge is adopted as the comparison value to define a passage criterion. Any permit crossing the bridge alone or with traffic restrictions leading to a lower reliability index will not be allowed on the bridge. The actual traffic load is obtained from existing traffic records using a model of traffic flow. The method is applied to 10 bridges fully representative of the old and nondocumented bridges most often encountered on Spanish highways. The final result is definition of the standard permits as presented in Eurocode 1 that are allowed on the bridge. From the most unfavorable permit, a criterion is derived concerning the actual vehicle permits.

Subdivision Activity on the San Francisco Peninsula: 1860-1970

Subdivision Activity on the San Francisco Peninsula: 1860-1970 Elizabeth K. Burns* The total variety of subdivision activity within a region at given points in time is seldom discussed in morphological studies of urban growth. Development activity is usually examined within a framework of one or more influential parameters, such as improvements in peripheral transportation, the timing of building activity, and pre-existing field boundaries and property lines.1 The impact of individual parameters may vary within any one region, however, and only affect the development decisions for specific locations within the full region. To better identify the full range of variations in regional development and their origins, the author examines subdivision activity on the San Francisco Peninsula from 1860 to 1970.2 The 110-year interval was divided into six periods so that subdivisions laid out under similar conditions of accessibility and residential demand could be compared. Types of subdivision activity were identified by means of * Dr. Burns is Assistant Professor of Geography at the University of Utah, Salt Lake City 84112. 1 Such approaches are well represented, for example, by Jerome D. FeIlmann , "Pre-Building Growth Patterns in Chicago," Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Vol. 47 (March 1957), pp. 57-82; David Ward, "The Pre-Urban Cadaster and the Urban Pattern of Leeds," Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Vol. 52 (June 1962), pp. 150-166; and Charles S. Sargent, Jr., "Toward a Dynamic Model of Urban Morphology," Economic Geography, Vol. 48 (October 1972), pp. 357-374. 2 The procedures and findings are more fully presented in Elizabeth Kates Burns, "The Process of Suburban Residential Development: The San Francisco Peninsula, 1860-1970," unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of California , Berkeley, 1974, Chapter 5 and Appendices B and C. 18ASSOCIATION OF PACIFIC COAST GEOGRAPHERS cluster analysis, which permitted the comparison of individual subdivisions in each period and their grouping into a few clusters whose common characteristics could be readily determined. The Regional Context In this study, the San Francisco Peninsula is defined as the suburbs which extend south from the San Francisco City and County line for forty miles along the historic Spanish highway, El Camino Real, and the original route of the Southern Pacific Railroad (Figure 1). The region is bounded by San Francisco Bay on the east and the Santa Cruz Mountains on the west and, although mainly in San Mateo County, includes Palo Alto and Stanford University in northern Santa Clara County. In 1970, the Peninsula had a variety of suburban residential areas whose diversity was established early in the region's development .3 A visitor in 1915 exclaimed that "the man who can not be accommodated in a satisfactory way in San Mateo County can not be accommodated anywhere on earth—manufacturer, artisan, millionaire , lover of Nature, and a modern agriculturist, as well as the artist and student."4 There were broad social contrasts between the lowerstatus northern Peninsula, including Daly City, Brisbane, South San Francisco, and Colma, and the higher-status commuter suburbs which extend south of Millbrae. The most prestigious areas were the older affluent suburbs of Hillsborough and Atherton along the railroad and the newer suburbs of Woodside and Portóla Valley to the west in the foothills. In the southern Peninsula, the low status of East Palo Alto, a Black suburb near the Bay, contrasted with affluent residential areas of Menlo Park and Palo Alto to the west near Stanford University. 3 U. S. Bureau of the Census, San Francisco-Oakland, California Urban Atlas (Washington, D.C.: Series GE-80, 1974). An informative local history is provided in Frank M. Stanger, South from San Francisco: San Mateo County, California, its History and Heritage (San Mateo County Historical Association, 1963). 4 Elbert Hubbard, A Little Journey to San Mateo County (East Aurora, New York: Roycroft Shop, 1915), p. 22. YEARBOOK · VOLUME 39 · 197719 Figure 1. The San Francisco Peninsula, showing El Camino Real, the Southern Pacific Railroad (original route), presently incorporated cities (capitalized), selected unincorporated places, and boundaries of San Mateo County (dashed lines ) . 20ASSOCIATION OF PACIFIC COAST GEOGRAPHERS The region presently contains relatively little unsubdivided land, primarily large parcels near the Bay or in the foothills and bypassed sites...

Autopista Tarragona – Valencia - España

The present article describes the construction of the stretch Puzol-Castellon of the Mediterranean Highway in which for the second time the Californian techniques of rigid pavements have been used in a Spanish highway: bases of gravel-cement and slabs of mass concrete, with oblique, sawn, unsealed joints. This system is especially appropriate for the use of sliding shutterings which means greater savings and faster execution of the roadbed.