What is the best way to ensure your roadway design is compatible with existing infrastructure?

2 Follow the design standards and guidelines

To ensure that your roadway design is compatible with existing infrastructure, you need to follow the relevant design standards and guidelines that apply to your project. These may include national, state, or local codes, regulations, policies, and manuals that specify the technical requirements and criteria for roadway design, such as geometric design, pavement design, drainage design, traffic control design, and safety design. You also need to consult with the authorities and agencies that own, operate, or maintain the existing infrastructure, such as utility companies, transportation departments, and environmental agencies, to obtain their approval and input on your design. By following the design standards and guidelines, you can ensure that your roadway design meets the legal and technical expectations and coordinates with the existing infrastructure.

4 Incorporate feedback and revisions

To ensure that your roadway design is compatible with existing infrastructure, you need to incorporate feedback and revisions from different sources and stages of your design process. You can solicit feedback from your clients, colleagues, contractors, consultants, and end-users to obtain their opinions, suggestions, and concerns about your design. You can also review your design at various milestones, such as preliminary design, detailed design, and final design, to check for errors, inconsistencies, and improvements. By incorporating feedback and revisions, you can ensure that your roadway design is responsive, reliable, and satisfactory to the existing infrastructure and the project stakeholders.

5 Document and share your design

To ensure that your roadway design is compatible with existing infrastructure, you need to document and share your design with the relevant parties and platforms. You can use various formats, such as reports, drawings, specifications, and models, to document your design and to provide the necessary information and instructions for its implementation and maintenance. You can also use different channels, such as meetings, presentations, emails, and cloud-based platforms, to share your design and to facilitate collaboration and coordination with the existing infrastructure owners, operators, and maintainers. By documenting and sharing your design, you can ensure that your roadway design is clear, consistent, and accessible to the existing infrastructure and the project team.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?