This paper was presented at the session titled `Planning and design considerations for transportation gateways, border crossings and trade corridors'. The North/South trade corridor through Alberta to Montana is know as the CANAMEX Corridor. The term CANAMEX is based on the country names CANada, America and MEXico. The CANAMEX Corridor is an existing 2,720 km long highway system that links Canada, the United States and Mexico. The goals of the CANAMEX Corridor include improving efficiency and level-of-service for the North/South flow of goods and reducing transport costs for traded goods by using long combination vehicles (LCVs). The benefits of LCVs include transportation savings of up to 30 percent, and reduced fuel consumption of up to 50 percent. Based on 30 years of LCV experience in Alberta, LCVs have established a better safety record than other heavy trucks. The 1,175 km portion of the CANAMEX Corridor in Alberta will be upgraded to divided, four-lane standards by 2007. The main purpose of this paper is to describe the planning, design, and operational considerations to accommodate LCVs on the Alberta section of the CANAMEX Corridor. In Alberta, double trailer units (such as the Super-B Train) up to 25 m in overall length are allowed to travel throughout the rural primary highway system without restriction. LCVs, however, can be up to 38 m in length with a gross vehicle weight of 62.5 tonnes. LCVs are restricted to designated corridors, including the CANAMEX Corridor. This paper describes the geometric design enhancements such as intersection layouts, vehicle turning templates, acceleration and deceleration characteristics, sight distances, and median spacing and openings that have been developed to ensure safe and efficient movements of LCVs. Also described in the paper are the specific permit conditions under which LCVs are allowed to operate. These include highway design designation, day of the week, weather conditions, entrance/exit conditions and location, and operations in urban areas. Although there are some additional capital costs incurred in highway construction, the additional expenditures are justified based on enhanced road safety and more efficient transportation of freight. (A)
Abstract