Highways of the Karachay-Cherkess Republic under the influence of landslide processes

Abstract

The object of the study is landslide activity on highways passing through the territory of the Karachay-Cherkess Republic. The paper presents the results of systematization and analysis of various sources containing information on the danger of landslide activation on the highways of the Karachay-Cherkess Republic for 2005–2023. The conditions and causes of landslide manifestations on the roads of the republic are characterized, the role of natural and man-made factors in the development of this process is determined. The maximum number of cases of landslide activation on the roads of the republic is timed to the spring-summer period and is mainly due to heavy precipitation. Over the past 19 years, more than 100 significant landslide occasions have been recorded, causing damage to highways passing through 10 administrative districts of the republic. In the period 2010–2023 alone, 6,816 km of roads were deformed (damaged, destroyed) by landslide processes, including 4,057 km of paved roads and 2,759 km of unpaved roads. Most of the road sections where landslide deformations occurred are located in the Karachayevsky and UstDzhegutinsky districts of the republic. A relatively high level of landslide activity on the roads of the republic was noted in 20162018. The volume of the most catastrophic landslide movements near highways sometimes reached 1–2 million m3. The sections of roads where landslide activations were periodically observed in different years have been identified. Information is provided on the location of landslide manifestations, activity, and the extent of deformations of the roadway in different regions of the republic. The analysis of the socio-economic consequences of the landslide activations allows us to conclude that they are quite dangerous for the automobile network in the territory of the Karachay-Cherkess Republic.