Misplaced Pages

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52-533: Being a major secondary intercity route in Saudi Arabia, Route 613 consists of three traffic lanes and an emergency lane on each side, with both sides separated by a median strip , for a total of eight lanes. All intersections on the route are grade separated , and it runs parallel to the Persian Gulf for its entire length and is connected to other major highways in the region, along with Highway 40 . The expressway

104-434: A lane is part of a roadway that is designated to be used by a single line of vehicles to control and guide drivers and reduce traffic conflicts. Most public roads ( highways ) have at least two lanes, one for traffic in each direction, separated by lane markings . On multilane roadways and busier two-lane roads, lanes are designated with road surface markings . Major highways often have two multi-lane roadways separated by

156-631: A median . Some roads and bridges that carry very low volumes of traffic are less than 4.6 metres (15 ft) wide, and are only a single lane wide. Vehicles travelling in opposite directions must slow or stop to pass each other. In rural areas, these are often called country lanes . In urban areas, alleys are often only one lane wide. Urban and suburban one lane roads are often designated for one-way traffic . For much of human history, roads did not need lane markings because most people walked or rode horses at relatively slow speeds. However, when automobiles, trucks, and buses came into widespread use during

208-609: A median barrier , or railway , rapid transit , light rail , or streetcar lines. There is no international English standard for the term. Median , median strip , and median divider island are common in North American and Antipodean English . Variants in North American English include regional terms such as neutral ground in New Orleans usage. In British English the central reservation or central median

260-497: A 12 ft (3.7 m) standard lane width, while narrower lanes are used on lower classification roads. In Europe, laws and road widths vary by country; the minimum widths of lanes are generally between 2.5 to 3.25 m (8.2 to 10.7 ft). The federal Bundesstraße interurban network in Germany defines a minimum of 3.5 m (140 in) for each lane for the smallest two lane roads, with an additional 0.25 m (9.8 in) on

312-409: A higher-speed road in order to provide safe and frequent access to local homes and businesses. In some areas, the lane adjacent to the curb is reserved for non-moving vehicles. A reversible lane ( contraflow lane ) is a lane where the direction of traffic can be changed to match the peak flow. They are usually used where there are periods of high traffic, especially rush hour where the traffic

364-852: A multi-lane roadway. North American usage calls the leftmost lanes located closest to the roadway centerline the "inner" lanes, while British usage calls these lanes the "outer" lanes. Thus, it is less confusing to call these central lanes the "passing", "fast", or "overtaking" lanes in international contexts, instead of using the ambiguous inner/outer distinction. Regional differences between right-hand traffic and left-hand traffic can cause further confusion. Some medians function secondarily as green areas and green belts to beautify roadways . Jurisdictions can: plant lawn grasses with regular mowing ; hydroseed or scatter wildflower seeds to germinate , bloom, and re-seed themselves annually; or create extensive landscape plantings of trees , shrubs , herbaceous perennials and ornamental grasses . Where space

416-586: A second or third lower width lane in the same direction for cars 1.75 m (69 in) – those that have been built exclude trucks from these narrower lanes; however lower width lanes are not a recommended design principle for new roads, as it could be dangerous if traffic becomes heavier in future. In the United States, the Interstate Highway standards for the Interstate Highway System use

468-698: A section of the M6 between Shap and Tebay, which allows a local road to run between them, and on the M62 where the highest section through the Pennines famously splits wide enough to contain a farm . The other major exception is the A38(M) Aston Expressway , which is a single carriageway of seven lanes, where the median lane moves to account for traffic flow (a system known as tidal flow or reversible lane ). With effect from January 2005 and based primarily on safety grounds,

520-491: A single set of double yellow lines which may in some cases permit turns across the line. This arrangement has been used to reduce costs, including narrower medians than are feasible with a planted strip, but research indicates that such narrow medians may have minimal safety benefit compared to no median at all. The medians of United States Interstate Highways break only for emergency service lanes, with no such restrictions on lower classification roads. On British motorways ,

572-413: A steep grade without slowing other traffic. They are typically used by large trucks or semi-trailer trucks , which go uphill more slowly than they travel on level ground. They are often used on major routes such as motorways and interstate highways . Some high-volume limited-access highways use a local–express lane system. This physically separates express lanes for long-distance travel (closer to

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624-480: A traffic-calming or landscaping element rather than a safety enhancement to restrict turns and separate opposite directions of high-volume traffic flow. In some areas such as California , highway medians are sometimes no more than a demarcated section of the paved roadway, indicated by a space between two sets of double yellow lines . Such a double-double yellow line or painted median is legally similar to an island median: vehicles are not permitted to cross it, unlike

676-724: A tunnel at the intersection with the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Road. It then turns westward and intersects Highway 610, which provides access to the King Abdulaziz Airbase and Highway 619, which provides access to Saudi Aramco and the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals . The road then intersects H.E. Ali Naimi Road, which provides access to the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture . At

728-460: Is a lane on a multi-lane highway or motorway closest to the median of the road (the central reservation ) used for passing vehicles in other lanes. (North American usage also calls the higher-speed lane nearest the median the "inside lane" but in the United Kingdom this is the "outside lane".) Countries with right-hand traffic put the passing lane on the left; those with left-hand traffic put

780-502: Is also maximal at a width of 3.0 to 3.1 metres (9.8 to 10.2 ft), both for motor traffic and for bicycles. Pedestrian volume declines as lanes widen, and intersections with narrower lanes provide the highest capacity for bicycles. As lane width decreases, traffic speed diminishes. Narrow lanes cost less to build and maintain. They lessen the time needed to walk across, and reduce stormwater runoff . Pedestrian volume declines as lanes widen, and intersections with narrower lanes provide

832-574: Is at a premium, dense hedges of shrubs filter the headlights of oncoming traffic and provide a resilient barrier. In other areas, the median may be occupied by a right-of-way for a public transportation system such as a light rail or rapid transit line; for example, the Red and Blue Lines of the Chicago 'L' partially run in the medians of the Dan Ryan , Eisenhower , and Kennedy Expressways . In contrast to

884-519: Is important to both the residents of Greater Dammam and Jubail . It also serves the cities of Qatif and Ra's Tanura along its route. Highway 613 ( Arabic : الطريق السريع ٦١٣ ) is a major north-south controlled-access highway in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia connecting the Dammam metropolitan area to the industrial cities of Jubail and Ra's Al-Khair . The highway runs along and parallel to

936-458: Is located entirely within a wide median of Massachusetts Route 128 . This 502-bed facility was opened in 1993 as infill construction in the previously unused real estate that had been isolated by the divided highway in the early 1950s. An extreme example of a wide median can be found on Interstate 75 near Cincinnati , Ohio ; nearly the entire village of Arlington Heights , as well as the downtown district of Lockland , are both located between

988-452: Is not the case in many European countries. Lane markings are mostly lines painted on the road by a road marking machine , which can adjust the marking widths according to the lane type. Traffic reports in California often refer to accidents being "in the number X lane." The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) assigns the numbers from left to right. The far left passing lane

1040-401: Is predominantly in one direction, and on roads that may be geographically constrained, such as over bridges. One or more lanes are removed from the opposing flow and added to the peak flow – this technique is known as tidal flow. Dedicated lanes are traffic lanes set aside for particular types of vehicles: Some jurisdictions generally prohibit trucks from faster lanes on motorways, or from

1092-483: Is that decreasing the size of a median to 20 feet (6.1 m) from 30 feet (9.1 m) to add lanes to a highway may result in a less safe highway. Statistics regarding medians with barriers were not calculated in this study. Central reservations may also be used for reserved bus lanes , as in Istanbul's Metrobus , Los Angeles's J Line and Bogotá's TransMilenio . Center-lane running and island platforms installed in

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1144-481: Is the number 1 lane. The number of the slow lane (closest to freeway onramps/offramps) depends on the total number of lanes, and could be anywhere from 2 to 8. However in the UK, "lane 1" is the "slow lane" (left-hand lane). Lane capacity varies widely due to conditions such as neighboring lanes, lane width, elements next to the road, number of driveways, presence of parking, speed limits, number of heavy vehicles and so on –

1196-488: Is the preferred usage; it also occurs widely in formal documents in some non-British regions such as South Africa, where there are other informal regional words (for example middelmannetjie , which originally referred to the hump between wheel ruts on a dust road). Neutral section and central nature strip are coinages in Australian English . Additionally, different terminology is used to identify traffic lanes in

1248-436: Is the reserved area that separates opposing lanes of traffic on divided roadways such as divided highways , dual carriageways , freeways, and motorways . The term also applies to divided roadways other than highways, including some major streets in urban or suburban areas. The reserved area may simply be paved , but commonly it is adapted to other functions; for example, it may accommodate decorative landscaping , trees ,

1300-635: The Jubail Industrial City , respectively. Connecting the Jubail Naval Airport, it runs west of the Jubail Marine Conservation, before turning west and back northwest and terminating at Road 7950, which runs west to Highway 95 and east to Ra's al-Khair . The expressway consists of eight lanes across its entire length, three traffic lanes, with one emergency lane on each side. It is controlled-access with features of some of

1352-580: The Trans-Canada Highway near Ernfold , Saskatchewan , Canada , where eastbound and westbound lanes go as far as 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) apart from each other), but converge to a lane's width of separation in suburban areas and cities. In urban areas, concrete barriers (such as Jersey barriers ) and guard rails (or guide rails ) are used. In Dedham, Massachusetts , the Norfolk County Correctional Center (a state prison)

1404-451: The fast lane , and the lane closest to the shoulder the slow lane . Some jurisdictions, particularly on limited-access roads, ban passing-lane driving while not overtaking another vehicle; others merely require slower cars to yield to quicker traffic by shifting to slower lanes, or have no limitations. A climbing lane , crawler lane (UK ), or truck lane , is an additional roadway lane that allows heavy or underpowered vehicles to ascend

1456-739: The UK's Highways Agency 's policy is that all new motorway schemes are to use high containment concrete step barriers in the median (central reservation). All existing motorways will introduce concrete barriers as part of ongoing upgrades and through replacement as and when the current systems have reached the end of their useful life. This change of policy applies only to barriers in the median of high speed roads and not to verge side barriers. Other routes will continue to use steel barriers. In North America , and some other countries with large sparsely populated areas, opposing lanes of traffic may be separated by several hundred meters of fields or forests outside of heavily populated areas (an extreme example being

1508-522: The US Federal Highway Administration quantified the correlation between median width and the reduction of both head-on accidents and severe injuries. The study found that medians without barriers should be constructed more than 30 feet (9.1 m) wide in order to have any effect on safety, and that safety benefits of wider medians continue to increase to a width of 60 to 80 feet (18.3 to 24.4 m). A consequence of this finding

1560-437: The allowable width of road vehicles to a current maximum of 2.55 m (100.4 in) for most trucks, and 2.6 m (102.4 in) for refrigerator trucks. These widths do not include side mirrors, but only the vehicle body. The minimum extra space had been 0.20 m (7.9 in) and it is currently assumed to be at least 0.25 m (9.8 in) on each side. The international standard allows roads with less traffic to add

1612-673: The assumed maximum vehicle width, with an additional space to allow for lateral motion of the vehicle. In the United States , the maximum truck width had been 8 ft (2.4 m) in the Code of Federal Regulations of 1956, which exactly matched then standard shipping container width. The maximum truck width was increased in 1976 to 102 in (2.59 m) to harmonize with the slightly larger metric 2.6 m (102.4 in) world standard width. The same applies to standards in Europe, which increased

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1664-532: The carriageways may have to be built on different levels of the slope. An example of this is on the M5 motorway as it climbs up the side of the Gordano Valley south of Bristol . In Birmingham and many other cities, suburban dual carriageways may have trees or cycle lanes in the middle as a wide central reservation. Two examples on the UK road network where the carriageways are several hundred yards/metres apart, are on

1716-549: The centerline for highways in 1911. Hence, then chairman of the Road Commission, Edward N. Hines , is widely credited as the inventor of lane markings. The introduction of lane markings as a common standard is connected to June McCarroll , a physician in Indio , California. She began experimenting with painting lines on roads in 1917 after being run off a highway by a truck driver. After years of lobbying by McCarroll and her allies,

1768-448: The eastern coast of Saudi Arabia and Highway 95, another major highway running in the same direction. The highway spans 196 km (122 mi) between Khobar (at the al-' Aziziyah Municipality roundabout) and Ra's al-Khair (at the intersection with Road 7950) via Dhahran and Dammam , with connections to Saihat , Qatif and Tarout (via Road 6384) and Jubail (via Jubail Expressway 1 and Jubail Expressway 3). The expressway begins at

1820-578: The express lanes in an express-local system. Some lanes have restrictions based on vehicle weight , for example to prevent overloading certain parts of a bridge . A small number of jurisdictions have truck-only lanes, intended to increase reliability of freight deliveries. Different lanes can also have different height restrictions, depending on the shape of overpasses. The widths of vehicle lanes typically vary from 2.7 to 4.6 m (9 to 15 ft). Lane widths are commonly narrower on low volume roads and wider on higher volume roads. The lane width depends on

1872-557: The first two decades of the 20th century, head-on collisions became more common. The history of lane markings is connected to early mass automobile construction in Detroit. In 1906, the first Road Commission of Wayne County, Michigan was formed in an effort to make roads safer. (Henry Ford served on the board in the first year.) In 1909, the commission ordered the construction of the first concrete road (Woodard Avenue in Detroit), and conceived

1924-458: The highest capacity for bicycles. Painted lane markings, which designate a single line of vehicles for movement within traffic, vary widely from country to country. In the United States , Canada , Mexico , Honduras , Puerto Rico , Virgin Islands and Norway , yellow lines separate traffic going in opposite directions and white separates lanes of traffic traveling in the same direction; but that

1976-488: The median is never broken (except on the tidal flow of Aston Expressway ), but there are no such restrictions on other dual carriageways . The central reservation in the United Kingdom and other densely populated European countries (where it is known by their local names) is usually no wider than a single lane of traffic. In some cases, however, it is extended. For instance, if the road is running through hilly terrain,

2028-434: The median of a major road, those in urban areas often take the form of central traffic islands that rise above the roadway. These are frequently found on urban arterial roads . In their simplest form, these are just raised concrete curbs, but can also be landscaped with grass or trees or decorated with bricks or stones. Such medians are also sometimes found on more minor or residential streets, where they serve primarily as

2080-400: The median) from local lanes which have access to more frequent exits and entrances. Express lanes may have their own shoulders for safety, and sometimes dedicated entrance and exit ramps. (The term "express lane" is also used for HOV and toll lanes, which may or may not be physically separated.) A frontage road is a similar arrangement, were one or more lanes are physically separated from

2132-470: The medium reduce conflicts with stopped and parked cars as well as pedestrians near the curb, thus speeding service. In some cases, the median strip of the highway may contain a train line, usually around major urban centers. This is often done to share a right-of-way , because of the expense and difficulty of clearing a route through dense urban neighborhoods. A reserved right-of-way is contrasted with street running , in which rail cars and automobiles occupy

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2184-507: The more advanced highways of Saudi Arabia such as grade-separated ramps and cloverleaf interchanges . There are only fuel stations and few to no rest areas along the expressway, as it passes through several major cities and suburbs. This article about transport in Saudi Arabia is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Median strip A median strip , central reservation , roadway median , or traffic median

2236-627: The next intersection, the Highway intersects Highway 615, and the highway turns northwest through a modified cloverleaf interchange , which carries it through downtown Dammam . It intersects Highway 605 twice and Highway 617 once before leaving Dammam, passing slightly west of Saihat and 'Anak. An intersection with Road 6384 provides access to the highway to residents of Qatif and Tarout , while another with Highway 614 provides access to Ra's Tanura . 45 km (28 mi) further, it intersects Jubail Expressway 1 and Jubail Expressway 3, branching out to Jubail and

2288-754: The outer sides and shoulders being at least 1.5 m (59 in) on each side. A modern Autobahn divided highway with two lanes per direction has lanes 3.75 m (12.3 ft) wide with an additional clearance of 0.50 m (20 in) on each side; with three lanes per direction this becomes 3.75 m (12.3 ft) for the rightmost lane and 3.5 m (11 ft) for the other lanes. Urban access roads and roads in low-density areas may have lanes as narrow as 2.50 m (8.2 ft) in width per lane, occasionally with shoulders roughly 1 m (39 in) wide. Depending on speed, road curvature and vehicle properties, heavy goods vehicle (HGV) combinations are prone to "high speed outside offtracking". This means that

2340-400: The passing lane on the right. Motorways typically have passing lanes along their entire length, but other roads might only have passing lanes for certain segments, depending on design specifications typically related to available space, funding, and traffic levels. A 2+1 road alternates the passing lane between directions every few kilometers/miles. The passing lane is commonly referred to as

2392-680: The rearmost axle of the trailer does not follow the lateral path of the truck tractor unit, but may travel significantly—up to 1–3 meters (3–10 ft)—away from the curve center. Hence, narrow lanes on sharp curves have to be designed slightly wider than on straight roads. This effect is much greater on slippery snow-covered roads than on bare asphalt or cement concrete, calling for even larger lane widening. In urban settings both narrow (less than 2.8 m (9.2 ft)) and wide (over 3.1~3.2 m (10.2-10.5 ft)) lanes increase crash risks. Wider lanes (over 3.3~3.4m (10.8-11.2 ft)) are associated with 33% higher impact speeds, as well as higher crash rates. Carrying capacity

2444-665: The roundabout where it intersects Highway 617 near al-'Aziziyah Municipality on the northern tip of the Half Moon Bay . It travels northeast for the first 3 km (2 mi), turning northward and intersecting the Cooperative Council Road (Mashreq Route 80M), which travels eastward and becomes the King Fahd Causeway . It then bends around the eastern boundary of the King Abdulaziz Air Base , before constricting into

2496-631: The same lanes of traffic. Train lines that run in the median of highways include: City planners also commonly use median strips to accommodate urban tram tracks along a central segregated track , and examples of this layout are found across Europe. Some of the earliest practices of incorporating central tramways into road designs were pioneered in Liverpool by John Alexander Brodie , and later emulated in Manchester, such as along Princess Parkway or Kingsway . Lane In road transport ,

2548-629: The state of California officially adopted a policy of painting lines on its highways in November 1924. A portion of Interstate 10 near Indio has been named the Dr. June McCarroll Memorial Freeway in her honor. The first lane markings in Europe were painted at an accident hotspot in the small town of Sutton Coldfield near Birmingham , England, in 1921. The success of this experiment made its way to other hotspots and led to standardization of white paint lane markings throughout Great Britain. The first use in Germany

2600-699: The two directions of I-75. Some freeways in North America include "inverted" medians, which separate roadways running in the opposite direction from the standard for the country they are located in. Roads are so designed for a number of reasons, including to save space, for the creation of continuous flow intersections , or for diverging diamond interchanges . Inverted medians are also used in rare cases on local streets that historically had unusual traffic patterns, such as Bainbridge Street between 3rd Street and 5th Street in Philadelphia . An August 1993 study by

2652-420: The world and became standard for most roads. Originally, lines were drawn manually with ordinary paint which faded quickly. After World War II, the first machines for line markings were invented. Plastic strips became standard in the 1950s. This gradually led to the placement of plastic lane markings on all major roads. A passing lane (North American English), overtaking lane (English outside North America)

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2704-499: Was in Berlin in 1925, where white paint marked both lanes and road edges. When the standard for the new autobahn network was conceived in the 1930s, it mandated the usage of black paint for the center line for each carriageway. Black is more visible on the bright surface of concrete. By 1939, lane markings had become so popular that they were officially standardized throughout the United States. The concept of lane markings spread throughout

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