The "Standard Specifications for the Construction of Roads and Bridges on Federal Highway Projects (FP)" is issued primarily for constructing roads and bridges on Federal Highway projects under the direct administration of the Federal Highway Administration. It is also used by the U. S. Forest Service and other Federal agencies on their projects. These specifications are cited as "FP-14" indicating "Federal Project" Standard Specifications issued in 2014 and contain both United States Customary and Metric units of measure.

The purpose of this manual is to provide clear and helpful information for maintaining gravel roads. Very little technical help is available to small agencies that are responsible for managing these roads. Gravel road maintenance has traditionally been "more of an art than a science" and very few formal standards exist. This manual contains guidelines to help answer the questions that arise concerning gravel road maintenance such as: What is enough surface crown? What is too much? What causes corrugation? The information is as nontechnical as possible without sacrificing clear guidelines and instructions on how to do the job right.