Swedish Road Cuttings – National Inventory, Definition and Risk Status

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6463-900-1_40How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Rock slopes; Road cuttings; Risk classification; Maintenance

Abstract

Between 2018 and 2021, Trafikverket, the Swedish Transport Administration, conducted a large national inventory program of all road cuttings and associated slopes along the national road network. The work identified approximately 28,000 cuttings and rock slopes that were entered into the BaTMan (Bridge and Tunnel) management system. The purpose of the inventory was to identify the rock slopes and cuttings with the highest risk of failure along the roads network.

A risk classification method using A-C was chosen and made up of four probability factors. These are easy to apply based on the physical characteristics of the slope, the type of road and the possible consequence of a collapse on the roadway. The results obtained formed the basis for future management of rock slopes as built infrastructure. The risk rating or RR value allows the identification and prioritization of A and B slopes for analysis and inspection. The slopes identified for inspection have also been a large program of work and is ongoing. The classification system identifies C or low-risk slopes that did not require inspection soon.

Rock slopes along the road network differ depending on the local geological conditions, their age and construction methods. They have varied designs (slope, contour, distance to the roadside), according to different requirements and building standards (on blasting for example) over the past 75 years.

Resulting work after the national inventory and inspection programs includes quality control and updates to the data entered the BaTMan system. The inspection program identifies slopes with remediation or maintenance requirements. Remedial works programs along the road network, while having a high annual maintenance cost have been and continue to be successful as a preemptive safety strategy. Safety and reliability for road-users requires a long-term focus on understanding and eliminating potential risks from rockfall or slope failure.

Copyright

© 2025 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Aaron Hantler
AU  - Jimmy Magnusson
AU  - George Chamoun
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/12/07
TI  - Swedish Road Cuttings – National Inventory, Definition and Risk Status
BT  - Proceedings of the Rocscience International Conference 2025 (RIC 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 412
EP  - 418
SN  - 2589-4943
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6463-900-1_40
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6463-900-1_40
ID  - Hantler2025
ER  -