USE OF GIS FOR THE DESIGN AND PLANNING OF INFRASTRUCTURE

Abstract

The use of Geographical Information System (GIS), as a decision support tool is increasing in all fields of Civil Engineering in Pakistan. This study demonstrates the usefulness of GIS as a spatio-temporal analysis technique for the design and planning of infrastructure.
For the development of any area, planning and design of Infrastructure components like roads, potable water supply system, disposal of sanitary sewage and storm drainage has gained much importance. Planning and design of these components requires topographic surveys, which consume much time before the start of planning especially. By the application of Geographical Information Systems, planning; and design may be carried out in a very short space of time by super-imposing that planning on survey sheets prepared by the Surveying authority and the same was done in this study.
Satellite image was used to study the various geographic realities of the area and master planning was done by making water supply zones, defining sewerage disposal paths and storm drainage galleries that naturally exist within the site. Hence, maps having various layers of roads, water supply, sewerage and drainage were prepared and superimposed on satellite imagery using GIS, to bring as much geographical information as possible for investigation of all the related problems. On the basis of these plans, by super-imposing survey or topographic sheets to correlate elevations with planning, required results were obtained.