Naturalized Storm Water Structures for Roadside Drainage in India

The land corridors along the highways in India, particularly in the plain terrains, face problem of water stagnation in spite of having storm water drainage network. Due to inadequate embankment heights, the stagnant water damages the pavement layers mostly within one to two years of construction. This happens mainly from raised groundwater level due to irrigation activities at the adjoining agricultural fields and nonfunctional unlined drains having inadequate slope and siltation due to stagnant water. Also most stretches of roads on plains do not have natural drain discharge points, making the problem more acute. The paper has proposed an integrated roadside drainage system with naturalized storm water structures like dry or wet ponds, marshy lands, and wells to reduce or eliminate the water stagnation along the unlined drains and thus reduce the chance of pavement deterioration and failure. This system will be more cost effective over the pavement life cycle.