Cuts can be created by multiple passes of a
shovel,
grader,
scraper or
excavator, or by
blasting. One unusual means of creating a cut is to remove the roof of a tunnel through
daylighting. Material removed from cuts is ideally balanced by material needed for
fills along the same route, but this is not always the case when cut material is unsuitable for use as fill. The word is also used in the same sense in mining, in particular
open-pit mining. The use of cuttings often provides byproducts as a form of
mineral extraction, commonly sand, clay or gravel; the cost of building drains, reinforcing banks against
landslide and a high
water table are factors which commonly limit its use in certain areas.
Types of cut There are at least two types of cut,
sidehill cut and
through cut. The former permits passage of a transportation route alongside of, or around a hill, where the slope is transverse to the roadway or the railway. A sidehill cut can be formed by means of sidecasting, i.e., cutting on the high side balanced by moving the material to build up the low side to achieve a flat surface for the route. In contrast, through cuts, where the adjacent grade is higher on both sides of the route, require removal of material from the area since it cannot be dumped alongside the route.
A ledge is a cut in the side of a
cliff well above the bottom of a
gorge.
Lock cut at
Bray Lock,
Berkshire. The tall wooden poles are designed for boats to tie on to while awaiting entry into the lock. A
lock cut is a section of a river or other inland waterway immediately upstream and downstream of a
lock which has been modified to provide locations for boats to
moor while waiting for the lock gates to open or to allow people to board or alight vessels. ==Notable cuts==