Investigating the Effect of Traffic Volume on Edge Break Failure for Paved Roads in Kampala.

Abstract

Kampala City, stretching over 189 sq. km in area according to KCCA, is the major business and industrial hub of the country contributing over 60% of the country’s GDP. The vehicular and transport infrastructure of Kampala is in similar proportions. Even though road transport accounts for over 90% of all passenger and cargo traffic in Uganda, there is still no data on the actual number of vehicles on the country’s roads. It is estimated that the total number of vehicles in the country including motorcycles lies between 700,000 and 1,000,000 (MoWT 2012). It is estimated that 60% of vehicles in Uganda use Kampala roads even though the Kampala road network is only 0.083% of the estimated road length in Uganda according to the KCCA Strategic Plan 2015-2016. It is a fact that road users are attracted to good roads, meaning that the 260km of good paved roads in Kampala (KCCA 2015) are overwhelmed by high traffic volumes due to the high demand. According to the Proposed Kampala Physical Development Plan (2012), the Kampala Metropolitan Area, currently with a population of little over 3 million people is projected to grow to some 5 million in the coming decade and to exceed, at the very minimum, 10 million within a generation. Improved economic performance, greater human and social development and enhanced services are difficult to achieve with the current road network and transportation structures which a greatly overwhelmed by the very high human population in Kampala. The city and national transport system is central for economic growth and service delivery to the citizens of Uganda. The country’s road network falls into four categories: national, district, urban and community access roads. National roads total 21,000 km of which 3,490 km (16.6%) are paved and 17,510 km (83.4%) are gravel or earth surfaced.