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The grade (US) or gradient (UK) (also called stepth, slope, incline, mainfall, pitch or rise) of a physical feature, landform or constructed line refers to the tangent of the angle of that surface to the horizontal. It is a special case of the slope, where zero indicates horizontality. A larger number indicates higher or steeper degree of "tilt".
Buffalo, New York and Montreal, Quebec, Canada, specify 6 in 12, a pitch of approximately 26.6 degrees. [3] A flat roof includes pitches as low as 1 ⁄ 2:12 to 2:12 (1 in 24 to 1 in 6), which are barely capable of properly shedding water. Such low-slope roofs (up to 4:12 (1 in 3)) require special materials and techniques to avoid leaks. [4]
The world average river reach slope is 2.6 m/km or 0.26%; [2] a slope smaller than 1% and greater than 4% is considered gentle and steep, respectively. [3] Stream gradient may change along the stream course. An average gradient can be defined, known as the relief ratio, which gives the average drop in elevation per unit length of river. [4]
A degree (in full, a degree of arc, arc degree, or arcdegree), usually denoted by ° (the degree symbol), is a measurement of a plane angle in which one full rotation is 360 degrees. [4] It is not an SI unit —the SI unit of angular measure is the radian —but it is mentioned in the SI brochure as an accepted unit. [5]
Three streets in Los Angeles are steeper—28th Street in San Pedro at 33.3%, Eldred Street in Highland Park at 33%, and Baxter Street in Silver Lake at 32%. [2] Waipio Valley Road on the island of Hawai'i is said to be the steepest rural road in the United States, with some grades approaching 45%. It has been closed to non-local traffic.
Typically on straight road sections, the drainage gradient is at least 1–3% due to the normal cross slope of 1–3%. In curved sections the drainage gradient is higher, and may often reach 5–12% due to superelevated CS that may reach 5–8% in areas with icy roads and up to 12% in areas without icy roads.
Carrying capacity is also optimal at a width of 3.0 to 3.1 metres (9.8 to 10.2 ft), both for motor traffic and for bicycles. [8] Throughput is maximal at 18 miles per hour (29 km/h); as lane width decreases to 3.0 to 3.1 metres (9.8 to 10.2 ft), traffic speed diminishes, and so does the interval between vehicles. [8] [9]
Balsam N.C. Balsam Mountain, home of highest railroad station east of the Rockies; average grade about 4.0%, max 4.5%. 1 of 2 grades on southern railways former Murphy branch that are +4% grade. Balsam Mountain has seen many runaways. It is still in service operated by the Blue Ridge Southern Railroad (Watco).