Trafficability Study of Full-Scale Geosynthetic Portable Road Building System

Abstract

This study describes the full-scale traffic evaluation of a prototype submersible matting system (SUBMAT) at a test site on the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s campus in Vicksburg, MS. The SUBMAT prototype was designed to bridge the gap between high- and low-tide at a beach interface to enable 24-h vehicle offloading operations at an expeditionary watercraft landing site. This unique system is made from common geotextile materials, is filled with indigenous sand using simple commercially available pumps, and creates a robust driving surface. The results of the study showed that the SUBMAT system was able to sustain an accumulation of 1,000 Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement, 350 Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck, and over 150 M1A1 main battle tank passes without experiencing any significant damage. The ease of deployment, relatively low cost, and trafficability results could make the SUBMAT a suitable candidate for expedient low-volume roads in austere environments such as stream beds, low-water crossings, recently flooded or flood prone areas, and areas with weak soil.