Reading and Understanding Highway Plans

Gain a better understanding of how to read and comprehend DOT project plans.

Reading and understanding DOT construction plans is clearly critical for anyone involved with transportation projects. Contractor estimators need to know how to read these plans to properly bid the projects. Once the project is awarded, contractor personnel and subcontractors performing the work need to be able to follow the plans to accurately build the work. Engineers, inspectors, and consultants working for the DOTs also need to understand the plans, and while this seems to be an obvious requirement for managing the work, competencies vary. Other people involved with the work such as environmental specialists, geotechnical technicians, material providers, and outside agencies affected by the work also need an understanding of the plans. Often times people with various project responsibilities know how to look at their particular piece of work on a set of plans but not much else. There may be parts of a plan set that relate to someone's work that are not called out in the parts of the plan that specifically describe certain work.

Learning Objectives

• You will be able to describe the project as a whole.
• You will be able to identify where information is quickly.
• You will be able to recognize symbols plan abbreviations.
• You will be able to explain the planned work to others.