U-Turn Lanes in Narrow-Width Median Openings: Design Criteria for a Safe and Efficient Project

Abstract

U-turn lanes eliminate left turns at intersections and allow the manoeuvre to be made via median crossovers beyond the intersection. However, there are many situations where road infrastructures are characterized by the reduced width of the median. It is clear that, in such situations, we must adopt design criteria that take into account limitations imposed by the width of the cross-section of the road. This is the reason why it is necessary to adopt design solutions which expect a complete reorganization of the road section affected by the insertion of U-turns. In this paper, we intend to propose original guidelines for U-turn lane design, suitable to guarantee both the necessity to offer a high level of functionality of the road sections to be implemented by U-turns, and the principles of safety in order to reduce unsafe conditions during inversion manoeuvres as much as possible.