Living in the Shadow of the Motorway: Safety and Maintenance on the “Old” National Road Network

AbstractMotorways are at the highest level of the road classification with respect to performance characteristics. In industrialized and developing countries, once a motorway construction projects are completed, traffic volume on neighboring national network is seriously reduced. Subsequently, the question arises: “Should the State or the local administration be concerned about the serviceability and the level of safety of these low-volume roads?” In most cases public authorities operating national road networks are driven to apply lower performance standards due to reduced available funds. In this paper, the role of the national road network in the overall transportation system is portrayed through a comprehensive analysis. Usefulness of two-lane roads adjacent to motorways is outlined as well as the proposed performance under reduced traffic conditions are presented