Question

The thickness design of flexible pavement is dependent on _________

(a) uniformity of subgrade

(b) thickness of subgrade

(c) length of subgrade

(d) strength of subgrade

This question was addressed to me during an internship interview.

The origin of the question is Design of Flexible Pavements topic in section Design of Flexible & Rigid Pavement of Geotechnical Engineering II

Answer 1

Correct choice is (d) strength of subgrade

Easy explanation: The thickness design of flexible pavement is influenced by the strength of subgrade as the load transfer is based on grain-to-grain mechanism. It also depends upon the quality and the compactness of the subgrade.