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Road Design

Cover of Update to Guide to Road Design: Objectives of Road Design
Update to Guide to Road Design: Objectives of Road Design
  • Publication no: AP-R726-25
  • ISBN: 978-1-922994-60-8
  • Published: 20 March 2025

This report outlines the work undertaken to develop a process for identifying, assessing and managing the use of design parameter values outside the standard design domain. This includes the extended design domain and design exceptions, as documented in Edition 5.2 of the Austroads Guide to Road Design Part 1: Objectives of Road Design. These investigations included understanding the processes used by various agencies across Australia and New Zealand and developing a generic process that can either support road authorities without an existing process, or serve as guidance for road practitioners seeking additional information on the application of such parameters.

Join us for a webinar on Thursday 3 April at 1 pm AEST with Belinda Gibbons and Albert Wong on the updates to AGRD Part 1.

There will be question and answer opportunities during the session. No charge but registration is essential. Can’t make the live session? Register and we’ll send you a link to the recording.

Register for the webinar now.

  • Summary
  • 1. Introduction
    • 1.1 Purpose
      • 1.1.1 Report objective
      • 1.1.2 Purpose of the project
    • 1.2 Scope
    • 1.3 Methodology
    • 1.4 Deliverables
  • 2. Stakeholder Engagement Process
    • 2.1 Engagement strategy
      • 2.1.1 Engagement outcomes
      • 2.1.2 Engagement objectives
      • 2.1.3 Engagement tools
    • 2.2 Engagement methodology
      • 2.2.1 Engagement activities
  • 3. Literature Review
    • 3.1 New South Wales
      • 3.1.1 Overview of the process
      • 3.1.2 Summary
    • 3.2 Victoria
      • 3.2.1 Overview of the process
      • 3.2.2 Summary
    • 3.3 Queensland
      • 3.3.1 Overview of the process
      • 3.3.2 Summary
    • 3.4 South Australia
      • 3.4.1 Overview of the process
      • 3.4.2 Summary
    • 3.5 Western Australia
      • 3.5.1 Overview of the process
      • 3.5.2 Summary
    • 3.6 New Zealand
      • 3.6.1 Overview of the process
      • 3.6.2 Summary
    • 3.8 Literature review summary
  • 4. Proposed Guideline
    • 4.1 Purpose and introduction
    • 4.2 Definitions
      • 4.2.1 Design domain
      • 4.2.2 Normal design domain
      • 4.2.3 Extended design domain
      • 4.2.4 Design exception
      • 4.2.5 Summary of domain definitions
    • 4.3 Application of design criteria to project type
    • 4.4 Application to other road infrastructure disciplines
    • 4.5 Proposed EDD and DE process methodology
      • 4.5.1 Step 1 – Initiate
      • 4.5.2 Step 2 – Assess
      • 4.5.3 Step 3 – Implement and monitor
    • 4.6 Risk assessment
    • 4.7 Mitigation strategies
    • 4.8 Examples of common applications
    • 4.9 Roles and responsibilities
  • 5. Updates to Austroads Guide to Road Design Part 1: Objectives of Road Design
  • 6. Impacts on Other Guides
    • 6.1 Guide to Road Design Set
    • 6.2 Guide to Traffic Management Set
    • 6.3 Guide to Road Safety Set
  • 7. Conclusions and Recommendations
    • 7.1 Conclusions
    • 7.2 Recommendations
  • References
  • Appendix A Stakeholder Engagement Results
  • Appendix B Literature Review: Jurisdictional Comparison
  • Appendix C Project Type and Recommended Minimum Design Criteria
  • Appendix D Example EDD and DE Template
  • Appendix E Mitigation Strategies
  • Appendix F Example Case Studies
  • Appendix G Proposed Future Changes to the Guide Series
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