IRC:SP:116-2018 is the Indian Roads Congress guideline for designing and building gabion walls and revet mattresses on highways and bridges. This is what it covers and the numbers engineers look up most.
The guideline gives the specification, design principles and installation method for gabions and revet mattresses used in highway and bridge works — retaining walls, slope and bank protection, bridge abutment protection and river training.
| Section | Subject |
|---|---|
| 3 | Elements: double twisted mesh gabions, polymeric gabions, revet mattresses, prefilled units |
| 4 | Components: mesh specification, rock fill, filter media, foundation and backfill |
| 5 | Soil reinforcement units for retaining structures |
| 6 | Design of gabion retaining walls: proportions, loads, stability checks |
| 7 | Design of gabion and revet mattresses: thickness, tractive force, launching apron |
| 8 | Installation method, causes of failure, underwater placement, checklists |
| Annexure I | Item descriptions of double twisted mesh products |
| Annexure II | Mattress thickness against water velocity |
| Subject | What the guideline says | Clause |
|---|---|---|
| Stone size | 1.5 to 2.5 times the mesh opening; at least three layers in a 1 m unit, two in 0.5 m | 4.2 |
| Base width | 0.6–0.75 H for walls 1–6 m; 0.55–0.65 H for 6–10 m | 6.2 |
| Embedment | at least 0.5 m (1–6 m walls), 1 m (6–10 m); 0.3–0.5 m on rock | 6.3 |
| Batter | 3° to 6° from vertical, or vertical with stepped front | 6.4 |
| Live load | surcharge equal to 1.2 m of earth; thrust applied at H/3 | 6.5 |
| Porosity | not more than 40% for design | 6.6 |
| Backfill | selected fill out to the 45° + φ/2 line | 6.7 |
| Bearing | resultant within the middle third of the base | 6.12 |
| Mattress thickness | at least twice the median stone size; chosen from velocity | 7.2–7.3, Annexure II |
| Compaction | 95% of modified Proctor, 8–10 t roller; light plant within 1.5 m of the face | 8 |
| Check | Static | Seismic |
|---|---|---|
| Global stability | 1.3 (1.5 under abutments, buildings, important utilities) | 1.1 |
| Sliding | 1.5 | 1.125 |
| Overturning | 2.0 | 1.5 |
| Bearing capacity | 2.0 (2.5 under important structures) | 1.5 (1.875) |
| Internal stability | 1.5 | 1.125 |
Section 8.1 lists the causes: too little site data behind the design; poor workmanship — the wall not built as one mass with the backfill raised and compacted alongside; and poor galvanizing of the mesh, lacing and stiffening wires, which shortens the life of the whole structure. The coating is not a detail.
We do not host the guideline. IRC publications are sold by the Indian Roads Congress.
The Indian Roads Congress ‘Guidelines for Design and Installation of Gabion Structures’, covering the specification, design and installation of gabions and revet mattresses for highway and bridge works.
0.6 to 0.75 times the wall height for walls of 1 to 6 m, and 0.55 to 0.65 times the height for 6 to 10 m, subject to the stability checks.
Table 15: sliding 1.5, overturning 2.0, bearing 2.0 and global stability 1.3 in the static case, with lower values for seismic loading.
1.5 to 2.5 times the mesh opening — about 150–250 mm for 10×12 mesh.
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