MSc_TiesTemmink_2015 FROM A PROBLEM TOWARDS POTENTIAL: Improving  rural road design in drylands, a modelling case study for a catchment in the Tigray region, Ethiopia.

This research was of an explorative character and aimed at an improved understanding of the combined effect of road alignment and culvert design on local hydrology and erosion patterns at a catchment scale. A model was developed in the PCRaster environment to facilitate the execution of a scenario study focussing on a road system in the Tigray region, taking into account the low data availability and quality. A set of 28 road system scenarios was formulated, based on three different road alignments and different techniques for culvert positioning. The study aimed at a further development of concepts on improved road alignment and culvert allocation. The formulated scenarios were evaluated through the application of a Multi Criteria Analysis which was developed to address three objectives of rural road performance: Erosion, costs and the potential of water harvesting practises.