1. Never taper concrete down to less than 2 ft (610 mm) in width.
2. Depending upon the amount of transverse reinforcing steel, be careful of the number
of lanes that are tied together. In JPCP, tying more than three 12-ft (3.7-m) lanes
together may result in uncontrolled longitudinal cracking.
3. Always design the secondary (intersecting) route as independent in movement
from the primary route. Thus, as the primary route expands and contracts, no
unnecessary forces will be created in the secondary route.
4. Provide for expansion wherever payment is interrupted in its longitudinal direction.
5. Terminate joints at 90° to any intersecting joints, obstructions, or edges of pavement.
6. Where possible, lay out lane widths of the same dimension. This permits the
contractor to pave all the lanes without changing the paving machine setup
dimensions.
7. Unless unavoidable, all joints should be in a straight line. Curved joints are difficult
to saw and generally require additional forming.
8. For plain (nonreinforced) concrete pavement, the slab length/slab width ratio
should not exceed 2:1.