Previous researches on the hole-edge stress of rectangular roadway are summed up and the existing problems among them are presented. On this base

the general formulas of analytic functions are used to calculate the surrounding rock stresses around caverns with the function of complex variable

the hole-edge stresses are solved for rectangular roadways with variable span-depth ratios and lateral pressure coefficients through the calculating method for conformal mapping from exterior of unit circle to exterior of cavern with arbitrary excavation cross-section. Then distribution rules of hole-edge stresses influenced by variable span-depth ratios and lateral pressure coefficients are obtained. Stress concentration factors of midpoints in roofs and lateral walls are provided when vertical stress component and horizontal stress component are individually acted on the rectangular roadways; and their results are compared with those in literatures. It is showed that the calculated values of hole-edge stresses are dramatically affected by the boundary errors between the calculated cross-sections and the accordingly theoretical cross-sections. In this study

the calculated cross-sections obtained by the calculating method for conformal mapping approximate more to the accordingly theoretical cross sections

and accuracy loss will not be caused when surrounding rock stresses are solved by the general formulas of analytic functions. So these research results are much closer to the theoretical values for rectangular roadways; and they can be valuably employed in the stability analysis of surrounding rock and the designs on roadways theoretially.