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Geometric Design Guidelines for B.C. Roads

Last updated on May 6, 2025

The information on this page provides road design guidelines for the highway system in British Columbia.

The latest edition of the Transportation Association of Canada (TAC) Geometric Design Guide for Canadian Roads is the primary source for basic design principles. The AASHTO document, A Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets, 7th Edition, is recommended as a secondary reference for basic design principles.

The B.C. Supplement to TAC explains the preferred recommended practice for use on British Columbia transportation projects.

B.C. Supplement to TAC (2019)

  • B.C. Supplement to TAC Geometric Design Guide for Canadian Roads
    (PDF, 66MB, 578 pages - April 2021 Version)
     
  • The current up-to-date downloadable version is April 2021
  • The current published hard copy version is April 2019
  • New and revised content will be provided below as it becomes available
  • Individual chapters are also available below

​Updates for B.C. Supplement to TAC

Technical Circulars

Technical circulars are used to ensure timely and uniform application of technical standards and practices within the B.C. transportation community. Circulars clarify, modify or introduce new practices in the application of technical issues.

Printing Instructions

  • Technical printing details - 8½x11 (letter) or 11x17 (tabloid), single-sided or double-sided, and colour or black and white
  • The entire supplement may be printed, updated sections may be printed for insertion/replacement to existing hard copies
  • Printing Instructions 2019 (PDF)

Individual Chapters

Individual chapters are provided in PDF format for quicker download and to enable the replacement of updated individual sections as required.

Individual Chapters for B.C. Supplement to TAC
Chapter Name DL Pages Size Updated
Entire Document PDF 578 66 MB April 2021
Front Matter PDF 12 1.5 MB  
Table of Contents PDF 2 190 KB  
100 Highway Design Process PDF 24 1.2 MB April 2021
200 Classification (no content)        
300 Alignment PDF 18 820 KB  
400 Cross Sections PDF 18 2.5 MB  
500 Low-Volume Roads PDF 18 960 KB  
600 Safety Elements PDF 51 5.9 MB  
700 Intersections and Access PDF 62 21 MB  
800 Interchanges (no content)        
900 Auxiliary Facilities PDF 42 1.4 MB  
1000 Hydraulics PDF 62 8.9 MB  
1100 Railway Crossings & Utilities PDF 32 2.4 MB  
1200 Contracts and Drawings PDF 86 9.3 MB Nov 2020
1200 Sample Drawings (11x17) PDF 19 2.6 MB Nov 2020
1300 Geometric Improvements PDF 50 400 KB  
1400 Subdivision Roads PDF 42 4.0 MB  
1500 Alpine Ski Village Roads PDF 32 3.4 MB  
1600 Noise Policy PDF 8 260 KB  

 

Purchase a Hard Copy

Order B.C. Supplement to TAC
Hard copy in a black d-ring binder with chapter tabs.

Technical Bulletins
You must download bulletins from this site to maintain compliance with current requirements.

Use the following checklists, spreadsheets and samples to ensure you meet requirements.

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