Investigating the performance of rural road drainage systems in Uganda: a case study of Katakwi district

Abstract

This study was carried out to investigate the performance of rural road drainage systems in Uganda, a case study of Katakwi district roads. Specifically, the study covered the assessment of the current state of rural road drainage condition; the factors affecting the performance of rural road drainage systems, and the development of sustainable drainage management solutions for rural roads. The study adopted the analytical research design utilizing both qualitative and quantitative approaches to the research. Data was collected from 15 roads using observation methods and photography. The study established that none of the rural roads surveyed had good drainage systems. The findings show that 18 per cent of the drainage systems were in a bad state which means that they were in danger of failure or had already failed. Furthermore, the majority of the entire rural road drainage systems i.e. 68 per cent were in a poor state or needed major interventions, while only 14 per cent were in a fair state which was an indication of the requirement for minor interventions. The study also observed that the key factors affecting the performance of the drainage systems of key roads in Katakwi district included poor land use, topography, poor workmanship and construction practices, lack of or inadequate maintenance and flooding. However, the major factor contributing to the poor status of the drainages were lack of proper designs and lack of maintenance. The design for the improvement of the drainage system focused on road side drains for Korikori-Kapujan. The design which included estimation of catchment areas, calculation of design discharge and hydraulic design was done with a result of a trapezoidal section with bottom width of 200mm, depth of 300mm, and side slopes of 1:1. The study recommended that maintenance practices should be given priority; this includes removal and cleaning up of the drains. This can be achieved by increasing budgetary allocation for maintenance. KEY WORDS: (Drainage, rural road, performance, culverts, design)