NICET - Highway Construction Inspection Practice Exam

Where can you find the shape of the road's side slopes and ditches?

1. Profile sheets

2. Typical section sheets

3. Plan sheets

4. Cross-section sheets

The correct answer is: Typical section sheets

The shape of the road's side slopes and ditches is typically detailed in the typical section sheets. These sheets provide standard designs that depict common cross-sections of the roadway, including the dimensions and slopes of the side and roadside ditches. They are essential for understanding how the roadway interacts with the surrounding landscape, including water drainage and earth movement. Typical section sheets illustrate the standard geometries used across projects, which helps ensure consistency and compliance with design specifications. They also serve as a reference for the construction process, aiding inspectors in confirming that the work aligns with the intended design. In contrast, profile sheets primarily focus on the elevation changes of the roadway over a given distance, while plan sheets provide a bird's-eye view of the layout, including alignment and feature placements. Cross-section sheets give a snapshot of specific cuts through the terrain at various locations along the road, but they do not generally define the standard shapes used throughout a project as thoroughly as typical section sheets do.