Abstract

Incessant occurrence of road pavement deterioration and building collapse, mainly because of their poor geotechnical and mechanical properties has made it imperative for a proper understanding of the geotechnical properties of soils. Six (6) soil samples were collected along the Benin Technical College road and Textile mill road and were subjected to various Geotechnical tests to ascertain the reasons for failures. The tests conducted are Moisture Content, Particle size distribution Specific Gravity, Atterberg Limits, Compaction, California Bearing ratio (CBR) as specified by the British Standard BS1990 and Federal Ministry of Works. The results showed that the soils were ML/ CL according to the Unified Classification System. The Compaction of the soil between 1.58g/cm3 to 1.72g/cm3, Maximum Dry Density (MDD) 15.9 to 17.1%and Optimum Moisture Content (OMC) 15.1 to18% while the California Bearing Ratio (CBR) for unsoaked 5.9 to 23 and soaked is 2.5 to 16.7. These result shows how unsuitable the soil is for subgrade and one of the causes of the detoriation and failing of the road in these locations but if they are to be used as subgrade and subbase material, the soils should be stabilized chemically, mechanically or reworked.