Transportation Engineering

TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING
CODE: CEB 8241

Course Purpose
Provide knowledge of planning, operate and manage the
transportation systems (ie facilities and traffic) so that to have
safe and economical transportation facilities.
Course Objectives:
At the end of the course the students should be able:
i. To explain the role of transportation systems to the society
ii. To carry out transportation planning
iii.
To plan, design, and manage traffic operations
iv.To carry out cost benefit analysis in transportation industry.
Pre-requisite modules:
i. Highway Engineering design
ii. Geometric design and Traffic Engineering
iii.
Pavement maintenance and Evaluation
iv.Highway Engineering Materials
Assessment plan:
Assignment - 2Nos (25%)
Test 1Nos (15%)
Examination 1 (60%)
1.1 INTRODUCTION
Civil Engineering Department-MIST: By Duwa H.C
Definitions:
Transportation Engineering - is the application of technology
and scientific principles to planning functional design, operation
and management of facilities for any mode of transportation in
order to provide safe, rapid, comfortable, convenient,
economical and environmentally compatible movements of
people and goods.
Transportation system is the an infrastructure/facility that
serves to move people and goods by the use of vehicle
1.2
Transportation Organizations
The operation of transportation services is carried out by a

variety of organizations. The following categories outline the
basic purposes and functions that these organizations serve:
i. Private companies that are available for hire to transport
people and goods.
ii. Regulatory agencies that monitor the behavior of
transportation companies in the areas such as pricing of
services and safety eg DRTLA, TCAA.
iii. National agencies such as Ministry of Works and Ministry
of Infrastructure developments who are responsible for
carrying out legislation, planning, design, construction and
maintenance of transportation facilities at national level.
iv. Local agencies that are responsible for planning, design,
construction and maintenance of transportation facilities at
Regional, District and local levels.
v.Trade associations that represents the interests of particular

transportation activity such as railways, habours or intercity
buses and who serves these groups by furnishing data,
information and means for discussing mutual concerns eg
TABOA, MUWADA etc.
vi. Professional organizations comprised of individual who
may be employed by any of the transportation organizations
but have common professional bonds and benefits who shares
the results of their work eg AASHTO, IET etc.
vii. Organization of transportation users who wish to influence
the legislative process and furnish its members with useful
travel information eg TARA Tanzania road user
associations.
Authorities involved in the regulation of road transport in
Tanzania
i. Ministry of communication and transportation commercial
licensing, implementation of national transport policy and
planning various transportation modes.
ii. Ministry of works axle load control, construction and
maintenance of national truck roads and bridges
(TANROADS).
iii. Home affairs enforcements
iv. Finance road toll
v.Regional administration regional licensing
vi. Planning commission key transport utilities (social
services, business centers etc)
1.3
The planning and management responsibilities are divided

between Ministries responsible for transport works, Home
affairs, Regional administration and Local government &
Finance
2.1 Role of transportation in society
Transportation is a non separable part of any society. It exhibits
a very close relation to the style of life, the range and location of
activities and the goods and services which will be available for
consumption. Advances in transportation has made possible
changes in the way of living and the way in which societies are
organized and therefore have a great influence in the
development of civilizations.
Transportation is responsible for the development of
civilizations from very old times by meeting travel requirement
of people and transport requirement of goods. Such movement
has changed the way people live and travel. In developed and
developing nations, a large fraction of people travel daily for
work, shopping and social reasons. But transport also consumes
a lot of resources like time, fuel, materials and land.
i. Economic role of transportation
Economics involves production, distribution and consumption of
goods and services. People depend upon the natural resources to
satisfy the needs of life but due to difference in local resources,
there is a lot of difference in standard of living in different
societies. So there is an immense requirement of transport of
resources from one particular society to other. These resources

can range from material things to knowledge and skills like
movement of doctors and technicians to the places where there
is need of them.
a. The place, time, quality and utility of goods
For example if commodities are produced at one place and
wanted by people of another place distant x, then the price of
the commodity is dependent on the distance between two centers
and the system of transportation between two points. With
improved system the commodity will be made less costly at
consumers place.
b. Changes in location of activities
The reduction of cost of transport does not have same effect on
all locations. In case two different place supply commodities to
one town. With similar condition of transport system the near
place to town will supply a lot of commodities than the far one.
But due to improvement of road network between the far place
and the town, then the far place becomes the supply point of
product/commodities.
ii.
Social role of transportation
Transportation has always played an important role in

influencing the formation of urban societies. Although other
facilities like availability of food and water played a major role,
the contribution of transportation can be seen clearly from the
formation, size and pattern, and the development of societies,

especially urban centers.
a. Formation of settlements
From the beginning of civilization, the man is living in
settlements which existed near banks of major river junctions, a
port, or an intersection of trade routes.
b. Size and pattern of settlements
The initial settlements were relatively small developments but
with due course of time, they grew in population and developed
into big cities and major trade centers. The size of settlements is
not only limited by the size of the area by which the settlement
can obtain food and other necessities, but also by considerations
of personal travels especially the journey to and from work. The
increased speed of transport and reduction in the cost of
transport has resulted in variety of spatial patterns.
c. Growth of urban centers
When the cities grow beyond normal walking distance, then
transportation technology plays a role in the formation of the
city. For example, many cities in the plains developed as a
circular city with radial routes, where as the cities beside a river
developed linearly. The development of automobiles and other
factors like increase in personal income, and construction of
paved road network, the settlements were transformed into
urban centers of intense travel activity.
iii. Political role of transportation

The world is divided into numerous political units which are
formed for mutual protection, economic advantages and
development of common culture. Transportation plays an
important role in the functioning of such political units.
a. Administration of an area
The government of an area must be able to send/get information
to/about its people. It may include laws to be followed, security
and other needful information needed to generate awareness. An
efficient administration of a country largely depends on how
effectively government could communicate this information to
all the country. However, with the advent of communications, its
importance is slightly reduced.
b. Political choices in transport
These choices may be classified as communication, military
movement, and travel of persons and movement of freight. The
primary function of transportation is the transfer of messages
and information. It is also needed for rapid movement of troops
in case of emergency and finally movement of persons and
goods. The political decision of construction and maintenance of
roads has resulted in the development of transportation system.
iv.
Environmental role of transportation
The negative effects of transportation are more dominating than

its useful aspects as far as transportation is concerned. There are
numerous categories into which the environmental effects have

been categorized. They are explained in the following sections.
a. Safety aspect
Growth of transportation has a very unfortunate impact on the
society in terms of accidents. Worldwide death and injuries from
road accidents have reached epidemic proportions. Several
people killed and about 15 million injured on the road accidents
annually. Increased variation in the speeds and vehicle density
resulted in a high exposure to accidents. Accidents result in loss
of life and permanent disability, injury, and damage to property.
Accidents also cause numerous non-quantifiable impacts like
loss of time, grief to the relatives of the victim, and
inconvenience to the public. The loss of life and damage from
natural disasters, industrial accidents, or epidemic often receive
significant attention from both government and public. This is
because their occurrence is concentrated but sparse. On the other
hand, accidents from transport sector are widespread and occur
with high frequency.
b. Air Pollution
All transport modes consume energy and the most common
source of energy is from the burning of fossil fuels like coal,
petrol, diesel, etc. The relation between air pollution and
respiratory disease has been demonstrated by various studies and
the detrimental effects on the planet earth are widely recognized
recently. The combustion of the fuels releases several
contaminants into the atmosphere, including carbon monoxide,

hydrocarbons, oxides of nitrogen, and other particulate matter.
Hydrocarbons are the result of incomplete combustion of fuels.
Particulate matters are minute solid or liquid particles that are
suspended in the atmosphere. They include aerosols, smoke, and
dust particles. These air pollutants once emitted into the
atmosphere, undergo mixing and disperse into the surroundings.
c. Noise pollution
Sound is acoustical energy released into atmosphere by vibrating
or moving bodies where as noise is unwanted sound produced.
Transportation is a major contributor of noise pollution,
especially in urban areas. Noise is generated during both
construction and operation. During construction, operation of
large equipments causes considerable noise to the neighborhood.
During the operation, noise is generated by the engine and
exhaust systems of vehicle, aerodynamic friction, and the
interaction between the vehicle and the support system (roadtire, rail-wheel). Extended exposure to excessive sound has been
shown to produce physical and psychological damage. Further,
because of its annoyance and disturbance, noise adds to mental
stress and fatigue.
d. Energy consumption
The spectacular growth in industrial and economic growth
during the past century has been closely related to an abundant
supply of inexpensive energy from fossil fuels. Transportation
sector is un-believed to consume more than half of the

petroleum products. The compact of the shortage of fuel was
experienced during major wars when strict rationing was
imposed in many countries. The impact of this had cascading
effects on many factors of society, especially in the price
escalation of essential commodities. However, this has few
positive impacts; a shift to public transport system, a search for
energy efficient engines, and alternate fuels. During the time of
fuel shortage, people shifted to cheaper public transport system.
Policy makers and planners thereafter gave much emphasis to
the public transit which consumes less energy per person. The
second impact was in the development of fuel-efficient engines
and devices and operational and maintenance practices. A fast
depleting fossil fuel has accelerated the search for energy
efficient and environment friendly alternate energy source. The
research is active in the development of bio-fuels, hydrogen
fuels and solar energy.
v.Other impacts
Transportation directly or indirectly affects many other areas of
society and few of them are listed below:
Almost all cities use 20-30 percent of its land in transport
facilities. Increased travel requirement also require additional
land for transport facilities. A good transportation system takes
considerable amount of land from the society.
Aesthetics of a region is also affected by transportation. Road

networks in quite country side are visual intrusion. Similarly, the
transportation facilities like fly-overs are again visual intrusion
in urban context.
The social life and social pattern of a community is severely
affected after the introduction of some transportation facilities.
Construction of new transportation facilities often requires
substantial relocation of residents and employment
opportunities.
3.1
Introduction to Transportation modes
The following are the major transport modes with their

movement systems and technologies.
i. Air way international, national, regional or chartered airway,
they are used by aircrafts to transport passengers and cargo.
The airports are the terminals of aircrafts using the airways.
ii. Highway/main land Freeway, Arterial roads, Collectors,
Feeder roads and/or Rural roads, they are used by cars, buses
and trucks to carry people and goods from one place to
another.
iii. Rail way interstates/nations, regional and urban or and/
cities, they are used by trains to transport cargos and passenger
from one place to another.
iv. Marine/water ways ocean shipping, lake and river/canal,
they are used by water vessels ie ships, ferries, boats etc to
transport mostly cargo and people.
v.Continuous flow systems includes pipelines for transporting

local gases, storm water, waste water, water supply, crude oils
etc, belts and escalators used to transport people and small
luggage for short distances, Cables and lifts focus for short
distance for rough terrains.
3.2 Transportation Systems

The transportation systems includes transportation facilities,
transportation modes, passenger, freights, administrations,
organizations and private sectors on which the transportation
facilities has be planned, designed & constructed, operated,
managed and maintained so that the transportation modes should
provide effective transportation services at the affordable costs
to the market they serve.
a. Effectiveness - is described in terms of accessibility of the
mode, level of mobility it provides and productivity of
transport mode.
i. Accessibility refers to the cost of getting to and from the
mode in question
ii. Mobility is described in terms of speed or travel time. A
distinction is made between line haul speeds and door to door
travel time.
iii. Productivity refers to some measures of the total amount
of transportation provided per unit time. The amount of
transportation is usually thought of as the product of the

volume of goods or passengers carried and distance.
b. Costs are described in terms of capital costs and operating
costs. Capital costs include right of way, construction costs,
vehicles and other equipment costs, operating costs including
costs of labour, fuel, spare parts and maintenance costs of
facilities and equipments/vehicles.
c. Markets are described in terms of extent to which the mode
in question carries passengers and freights/cargos.
d. Efficiency refers to the relationship between direct costs
(capital and operating) and indirect costs eg adverse
environment impacts, safety etc of the transportation and the
productivity of the system.
Generally a transportation system is a combination of links and
nodes together to form a transportation networks. The links are
the road segments and nodes are the junction and terminals.
In order to have a good operating transportation system, both the
links and nodes should operate in a better level of service (LOS)
otherwise the facility or system will fail due to traffic
congestion/jam.
4.1 Traffic Flow Behaviour on Road segment/link
Traffic Flow Theory is a tool that helps transportation engineers
understand and express the properties of traffic flow. At any
given time, there are millions of vehicles on our roadways.
These vehicles interact with each other and impact the overall
movement of traffic, or the traffic flow. Whether the task is
evaluating the capacity of existing roadways or designing new

roadways, most transportation engineering projects begin with
an evaluation of the traffic flow. Therefore, the transportation
engineer needs to have a firm understanding of the theories
behind Traffic Flow Analysis.
4.2 Types of Traffic Flow
Traffic flow has been divided into two primary types:
1.
Uninterrupted flow - is the flow regulated by vehicle to

vehicle interactions and interactions between vehicles and the
roadway. Occurs when vehicles traversing a length
of roadway are not required to stop by any cause
external to the traffic stream, such as traffic
control devices. For example, vehicles traveling on an
interstate highway are participating in uninterrupted flow.
2. Interrupted flow- is the flow regulated by an external
means, such as a traffic signal. Under interrupted flow
conditions, vehicle to vehicle interactions and vehicle to
roadway interactions play a secondary role in defining the
traffic flow.
4.3 Traffic Flow Parameters
Traffic flow is a difficult phenomenon to describe without the
use of a common set of terms. The following paragraphs will
introduce most of the common terms that are used in discussions
about traffic flow.
i.
Speed (v)
The speed of a vehicle is defined as the distance it travels per

unit of time. Most of the time, each vehicle on the roadway will
have a speed that is somewhat different from those around it. In
quantifying the traffic flow, the average speed of the traffic is
the significant variable. The average speed, called the space
mean speed, can be found by averaging the individual speeds of
all of the vehicles in the study area.
ii.
Volume
Volume is simply the number of vehicles that pass a given point

on the roadway in a specified period of time. By counting the
number of vehicles that pass a point on the roadway during an
interval of 15minute period, you can arrive at the 15minute
volume. Volume is commonly converted directly to flow (q),
which is a more useful parameter.
iii. Flow (q)
Flow is one of the most common traffic parameters. Flow is the
rate at which vehicles pass a given point on the roadway, and is
normally given in terms of vehicles per hour. The 15minute
volume can be converted to a flow by multiplying the volume by

four.
iv.
PHF (Peak Hour Factor)
This describes the relationship between hourly volume and the

maximum rate of flow within the hour: PHF = hourly
volume/maximum rate of flow. For the 15 minute periods, PHF
= volume/4 x (maximum 15 minute volume within the hour)
v.
Density (k)
Density refers to the number of vehicles present on a given

length of roadway. Normally, density is reported in terms of
vehicles per mile or vehicles per kilometer. High densities
indicate that individual vehicles are very close together, while
low densities imply greater distances between vehicles.
vi. Headway (h)
Headway is a measure of the temporal space between two
vehicles. Specifically, the headway is the time that elapses
between the arrival of the leading vehicle and the following
vehicle at the designated test point. You can measure the
headway between two vehicles by starting a chronograph when
the front bumper of the first vehicle crosses the selected point,
and subsequently recording the time that the second vehicles
front bumper crosses over the designated point. Headway is
usually reported in units of seconds.
vii. Spacing (s)
Spacing is the physical distance, usually reported in feet or
meters, between the front bumper of the leading vehicle and the
front bumper of the following vehicle. Spacing complements
headway, as it describes the same space in another way. Spacing
is the product of speed and headway.
viii. Gap (g)
Gap is very similar to headway, except that it is a measure of the
time that elapses between the departure of the first vehicle and
the arrival of the second at the designated test point. Gap is a
measure of the time between the rear bumper of the first vehicle
and the front bumper of the second vehicle, where headway
focuses on front-to-front times. Gap is usually reported in units
of seconds.
ix. Clearance (c)
Clearance is similar to spacing, except that the clearance is the

distance between the rear bumper of the leading vehicle and the
front bumper of the following vehicle. The clearance is
equivalent to the spacing minus the length of the leading
vehicle. Clearance, like spacing, is usually reported in units of
feet or meters.
x.
Jam Density-- the density when speed and flow are zero.
xi. Shockwaves
Shockwaves occur as a result of differences in flow and density
which occur when there are constrictions in traffic flow. These
constrictions are called bottlenecks. The speed of growth of the
ensuing queue is the shockwave, and is the difference in flow
divided by the difference in density.
xii. Space
Mean Speed-- the arithmetic mean of the speed of
those vehicles occupying a given length of road at a given

instant.
xiii.
Spacing-- the distance between vehicles moving in the same

lane, measured between corresponding points (front to front)
of consecutive vehicles.
Speed-- the time rate of change of distance.
xiv.
xv. Time
Mean Speed-- the arithmetic mean of the speed of
vehicles passing a point during a given time interval.

xvi.
Travel Time-- the total time required for a vehicle to travel

from one point to another over a specified route under
prevailing conditions.
4.4 Speed-Flow-Density Relationship

Speed, flow, and density are all related to each other. The
relationships between speed and density are not difficult to
observe in the real world.
Under uninterrupted flow conditions, speed, density, and flow
are all related by the following equation:
q = k*v
Where
q = Flow (vehicles/hour)
v = Speed (miles/hour, kilometers/hour)
k = Density (vehicles/mile, vehicles/kilometer)
Because flow is the product of speed and density, the flow is

equal to zero when one or both of these terms is zero. It is also
possible to deduce that the flow is maximized at some critical
combination of speed and density.
Two common traffic conditions illustrate these points. The first
is the modern traffic jam, where traffic densities are very high
and speeds are very low. This combination produces a very low
flow. The second condition occurs when traffic densities are
very low and drivers can obtain free flow speed without any
undue stress caused by other vehicles on the roadway. The
extremely low density compensates for the high speeds, and the
resulting flow is very low
4.5 Special Speed & Density Conditions
The discussion of the speed-flow-density relationship mentioned
several speed-density conditions. Two of these conditions are
extremely significant and have been given special names.
i. Free Flow Speed
This is the mean speed that vehicles will travel on a roadway
when the density of vehicles is low. Under low-density
conditions, drivers no longer worry about other vehicles. They

subsequently proceed at speeds that are controlled by the
performance of their vehicles, the conditions of the roadway,
and the posted speed limit.
ii.
Jam Density
Extremely high densities can bring traffic on a roadway to a

complete stop. The density at which traffic stops is called the
jam density.
4.6 Greenshields Model on Traffic Flow
Green shield developed a model of uninterrupted traffic flow
that predicts and explains the trends that are observed in real
traffic flows. Green shield made the assumption that, under
uninterrupted flow conditions, speed and density are linearly
related. This relationship is expressed mathematically and
graphically (see the figure 1 below).
Basic Flow Equations:
From figure b: v = A-B*k

Where A & B are the constants determined from the field
observations. This is normally done by collecting velocity and
density data in the field, plotting the data, and then using linear
regression to fit a line through the data points. The constant A
represents the free flow speed, while A/B represents the jam
density.
Inserting Greenshields speed-density relationship into the

general speed-flow-density relationship yields the following
equations:
q=(A-B*k)*k or q=A*kB*k2
Where:
q = flow (vehicles/hour)
A,B = constants
k = density (vehicles/kilometer)
This new relationship between flow and density provides an
avenue for finding the density at which the flow is maximized.
dq/dk = A 2*B*k
setting dq/dk = 0 yields:
k = A/(2*B)
Therefore, at the density given above, the flow will be
maximized. Substituting this maximized value of k into the
original speed-density relationship yields the speed at which the
flow is maximized.
v = A B*(A/(2*B)) or v = A/2
This indicates that the maximum flow occurs when traffic is

flowing at half of free-flow speed (A). Substituting the optimum
speed and density into the speed-flow-density relationship yields
the maximum flow.
q = (A/2)*(A/(2*B)) or q = A2/(4*B)
As you can see, Greenshields model is quite powerful. The
following can be derived from Greenshields model:
When the density is zero, the flow is zero because there are no
vehicles on the roadway.
As the density increases, the flow also increases to some
maximum flow conditions.
When the density reaches a maximum, generally called jam
density, the flow must be zero because the vehicles tend to line
up end to end (parking lot conditions).
As the density increases the flow increases to some maximum
value, but a continual increase in density will cause the flow to
decrease until jam density and zero flow conditions are reached.
4.7 Time-Space Diagrams
A timespace diagram is commonly used to solve a number of

transportation- related problems. Typically, time is drawn on the
horizontal axis and distance from a reference point on the
vertical axis. The trajectories of individual vehicles in motion
are portrayed in this diagram by sloping lines, and stationary
vehicles are represented by horizontal lines. The slope of the
line represents the speed of the vehicle. Curved portions of the
trajectories represent vehicles undergoing speed changes such as
deceleration.
Diagrams that show the position of individual vehicles in time
and in space are very useful for understanding traffic flow.
These diagrams are especially useful for discussions of shock
waves and wave propagation.
The time-space diagram is a graph that describes the relationship
between the location of vehicles in a traffic stream and the time
as the vehicles progress along the highway. The following
diagram is an example of a time-space diagram.
Time-space diagrams are created by plotting the position of each

vehicle, given as a distance from a reference point, against time.
The first vehicle will probably start at the origin, while the
vehicles that follow wont reach the reference point until slightly
later times. Reductions in speed cause the slopes of the lines to
flatten, while increases in speed cause the slopes to become
greater. Acceleration causes the time-space curve for the
accelerating vehicle to bend until the new speed is attained.
Curves that cross indicate that the vehicles both shared the same
position at the same time. Unless passing is permitted, crossed
curves indicate collisions
Shock Waves
Shock waves that occur in traffic flow are very similar to the
waves produced by dropping stones in water. A shock wave
propagates along a line of vehicles in response to changing

conditions at the front of the line. Shock waves can be generated
by collisions, sudden increases in speed caused by entering free
flow conditions, or by a number of other means. Basically, a
shock wave exists whenever the traffic conditions change.
The equation that is used to estimate the propagation velocity of
shock waves is given below.
vsw = (qb qa)/(kb ka)
Where
vsw = propagation velocity of shock wave (km/hour)
qb = flow prior to change in conditions (vehicles/hour)
qa = flow after change in conditions (vehicles/hour)
kb = traffic density prior to change in conditions (vehicles/mile)
ka = traffic density after change in conditions (vehicles/mile)
Note the magnitude and direction of the shock wave.
(+) Shock wave is travelling in same direction as traffic stream.
(-) Shock wave is traveling upstream or against the traffic
stream.
For example, lets assume that an accident has occurred and that
the flow after the accident is reduced to zero. Initially, the flow
was several vehicles per hour. Also, the density is much greater
after the accident. Substituting these values into the shock wave
equation yields a negative (-) propagation velocity. This means
that the shock wave is traveling against the traffic. If you could
look down on this accident, you would see a wave front, at
which vehicles began to slow from their initial speed, passing
from vehicle to vehicle back up the traffic stream. The first car
would notice the accident first, followed an instant later by the
second car. Each vehicle begins slowing after its driver
recognizes that the preceding vehicle is slowing.
4.8 Traffic Engineering Studies
The purpose of traffic engineering studies
i. Manage the physical systems eg taking inventories of
facilities.
ii. Investigate trends over time eg collection of accident data
and observe the impact with time for any modification or
improvement.
iii. Calibrate relationships especially empirical relationships
that describe traffic streams or estimate traffic parameters.
iv. Assessing the system performance eg measure speed or

travel hour and check the level of service of the facility.
Typical Traffic Engineering Studies
1. Volume studies quantify traffic demand, useful information
for design and operation of the facility.
2. Speed Critical input for design, control and safety aspects.
3. Travel time gives indication for performance of the facility
in terms of congestion level
4. Delay studies measures the amount of stopped delay along
the facility.
5. Density studies can be determined by measuring volume
and speed on site and calculating density.
6. Head ways and spacing can be done between individual
point of vehicles
Other special studies includes
1. Accident studies
2. Parking studies
3. Pedestrian studies
4. Studies of the goods movements from central business district
(CBD)
5. Calibration studies.
4.9 TRAFFIC FORECASTING PARAMETERS, K30 &
D30
Traffic parameters (K and D) are required to convert AADT into

Design Hour Volume (DHV) for a design project.
DHV = AADT X K
DDHV = AADT x KxD
ADT Average Daily Traffic counted for 24hours
AADT Average Annual Daily Traffic counted for 24hours
within 365 days consecutive
AAWT Average Annual Weekly Traffic excluding the
weekends (260 days)
DHV Design Hourly Volume
DDHV Directional Design Hourly Volume
K factor is the ratio of hourly traffic volume to the AADT
D factor is the ratio of total peak hour traffic travelling in the
peak direction.
Capacity analysis focuses on the traffic monitored at an
intersection or along a highway during a particular peak hour.
The peak hour most frequently used to design roads and
intersections is the 30th highest hour occurring during the design
year (for rural roads K30, for urban K50). The amount of traffic
occurring during this hour is called the Design Hour Volume

(DHV). K30 or K50 is the ratio of the DHV to the AADT.
K-factor is based on the 30th highest hour of annual traffic, it has
three general characteristics:
1. The K-factor generally decreases as the AADT on a highway
increases.
2. The K-factor generally decreases as development density
increases.
3. The highest K-factors generally occur on recreational
facilities, followed by rural, suburban, and urban facilities in
descending order.
Figure 2 below shows the relation between the highest hourly
volumes and AADT on arterials taken from an analysis of traffic
count data covering a wide range of volumes and geographic
conditions.
The curves prepared by arranging all of the hourly volumes of

one year, expressed as a percentage of AADT, in a descending
order of magnitude. The curves represent the following
facilities: rural, suburban, urban, and the average for all
locations studied. They represent a highway with average
fluctuation in traffic flow. The 30th hourly peak volume is chosen
because curves flatten to the right, indicating many hours in
which the volume approaches 30HV. The decision to use 30HV
is also based on the economics of roadway construction.
Directional Distribution
D-factors (directional distribution) are used for capacity analysis
(D) and pavement design (DF). A road near the center of an
urban area often has a D near 50, traffic volumes equal for both
directions. A rural arterial may exhibit a significantly higher D
because traffic is either traveling toward an urban area
(morning) or traveling away from an urban area (evening). The
D-factor used for pavement design (DF) is typically 50 percent
for two-way roads or 100 percent for one-way roads.
DDHV (Peak Direction) = AADT x K30 x D30

DDHV (Opposing Direction) = AADT x K30 x (1 D30)
Using the above procedures, DDHV project traffic forecasts are
generated for roadway links and intersection turning movements
as needed to satisfy design requirements.
4.10 LEVEL OF
ANALYSIS
SERVICE
(LOS)
OPERATIONAL
The Level of Service (LOS) analyses are to be performed in

accordance with the most current Highway Capacity Manual
(HCM) procedures. The two types of highway segments are
analysed to check their level of services. These are Basic Free
Way segment and Two way two lane road way.
a. Basic Free way Segment
The capacity of free way segment varies from 2250 passenger
car units per hour per lane (pcphpl) for free flow speed (FFS) of
90kM/hr and up to 2400pcphpl for FFS of 120km/hr or more
Generally the volume crossing the intersection is small
compared to free way segment because.
Lost time at intersection results into smaller volume ie
1900veh/hr
Low speed for vehicles crossing the intersections compared
to free way segment (at intersection speed<60km/hr)
Narrow lane width at intersection compared to freeway
segment.
Service Flow rate or Service Volume
Service volume is the maximum number of vehicles which can

be accommodated by a given facility/system under given
conditions at a given level of service
The freeway segment is analyzed in terms of: Capacity, LOS
and Lane requirements
Ideal conditions for basic freeway segments
i. Minimum lane width of 3.6m (12ft)
ii. Minimum left shoulder lateral clearance of 1.8m (6ft)
between edge of travel lane and nearest obstacle or object
that influences traffic behavior.
iii.
Minimum median lateral clearance of 0.6m (2ft)
iv.Traffic stream composed of entirely of passenger cars
v. Five or more lanes for one direction (in urban areas only)
vi.
Interchange spacing at 3.3km (2miles) or greater
vii.
Level terrain with grades no greater than 2% and
viii. A driver population composed principally of regular
users of the facility
These base conditions represents a high operating level, with a
free flow speed (FFS) of 110km/hr (70mil/hr) or greater,
otherwise the capacity decreases. For rural freeway the
minimum number of lane in one direction is 2 due to passing
distances.
Free flow speed in rural freeway is not affected by number of

lanes except for urban freeway where by freeway flow speed
increases with increasing number of lanes.
Level of Service (LOS)
LOS is intended to relate the quality of traffic service to the
given traffic volume on a road segment. The LOS may be based
on the following: Travel time/speed; total delay; comfort; safety
etc.
Procedure for Freeway Segment
1. Measure FFS when volume <1300pc/h/lane; FFS of
110km/hr for rural highway and 120km/hr for urban
highway.
FFS = BFFS fLC fLW fN fID
Where: BFFS Basic free flow speed
fLC speed reduction factor due to lateral clearance
(table C4)
fLW speed reduction factor due to lane width (table
C3)
fN speed reduction factor due to number of lane
(table C5)
fID speed reduction factor due to interchange
density (table C6)
2. Compute Flow Rate
Where: Vp Service Flow Rate (Veh/hr)

V Maximum service flow rate for LOSi under
prevailing roadway and traffic conditions for one
lane in one direction, in (Veh/hr) Volume of vehicles
per hour counted in the field
PHF = peak hour factor;
N = number of lanes in one direction of the freeway;
fw = factor to adjust for the effects of restricted lane
widths and/or lateral clearances;
fhv = factor to adjust for the effect of heavy vehicles
(trucks, buses, and recreational vehicles) in the
traffic stream; and
fp = factor to adjust for the effect of driver population
(tourist, student, senior citizens, etc.)
3. Compute fHV
Where:
PT proportional of trucks and buses
ET factor for buses and trucks
PR proportional for recreation vehicles
ER factor for recreational vehicles
4. Compute travel speed (S)
Maximum flow rate for 15min = V/PHF

For 90km/hr FFS 120km/hr and Vp (3100-15*FFS) then S
= FFS
5. From table C2 or figure C1 and then table C1 determine
LOS,
Density D =Vp/S
Example: A rural freeway has an ideal free flow speed of
120km/hr and two 3.6m lanes in each direction, with right
shoulder lateral clearance of 1.2m. Interchanges are spaced
approximately 5km apart. Traffic consists of 10% trucks and
buses and 8% recreational vehicles. The adjustment for driver
population factor is estimated to be 0.80. If the maximum 15min

flow rate is 1760veh/hr what is the level of service on a 1.7km
long 3.1% upgrade?
Soln:
FFS = 120 -0.0-1.9-0.0-0.0 = 118.1km/hr
fp = 0.80; ET = 3.0 table C8; ER = 2.0 table C9; PT = 0.10; PR =
0.08.
3100 15*FFS = 1329

1329<Vp Then FFS = 118.1km/hr
From table C1: 11<11.9: Level of service is C.

b. Two lane two way Segment
For the two lane two way roadway, the procedure for freeway is
modified to take account of the passing traffic, as the passing
traffic do so in the faces of the opposing (coming) traffic
There are two types of two lane two way highway.
i. Class I roadway.
For the class I, the percentage trips are long distance. LOS for
the class I roadway is the function of percentage time spent
following and average speed
iii. Class II roadway
For the class II roadway the LOS depends only on the
percentage time spent following.
Procedure for determine LOS for two lane two way segment.
1. Determine FFS by field measurements or by estimation as:
FFS = BFFS fLS fA
fLS reduction factor for lane-shoulder width (table C21)
fA reduction for adjustment of access point traffic density
(table C22)
2. Compute the peak 15minutes flow rate
3. Estimation of Average Travel Speed (ATS)

fnp factor accounting for no passing zone (table C27)

4. Estimation of Percent Time Spent Following (PTSF)
BPTSF Base Percent Time Spent Following

- factor accounting for direction number and no passing zone
(table C28)
5. Estimation of LOS
i. Compare the Vp with the two way capacity:
If Vp Capacity (3200pcph) then LOS = F stop
calculation.
ii. If Vp*Direction split 1700pcph then LOS = F stop
calculation
iii. For class I roadways: compare speed, PTSF with
limits in table C19, the more restrictive case governs
iv.For class II roadways: compare PTSF with limits given
in table C20.
Example: Class I two lane two-way rural highway has the
following traffic and road conditions; lane width of 3.6m, base
free flow speed is 100kph, six access point per kilometer, a
rolling terrain with 40% no passing zone, traffic volume is

800Veh/hr, peak hour factor is 0.9, 5% trucks and
10%recreational vehicles and directional split is 40/60.
Determine the level of service of the road segment (LOS).
Solution:
FFS = 100 2.1 2.5 = 95.4km/hr
Determine Vp for speed analysis
Check for capacity:

1008<3200: The LOS is not F.
Directional split
1008*0.6 < 1700: LOS is not F
Determine Vp for PTSF
Check for capacity

Determine ATS
Table 27 fnp = 2.5
Table C19: 80 < 80.3 < 90: LOS is B

Determine PTSF
From table C28:
=8.9
LOS is D.
c. NUMBER OF LANES REQUIRED

Project traffic forecasts ultimately are used to determine how
many lanes a corridor or project may require. Using the best
available current year data, and projecting future values of
DDHV, Servic flow, and Peak Hour Factor (PHF), the number of
lanes can be estimated. The DDHV estimates divided by the
service flow rate per lane for a required LOS and PHF, will
determine the number of lanes required in the peak direction.

Using the HCM methodology described in Section 2.9 above to
calculate the Service Flow Rate per lane, the number of lanes
can be determined by applying the following equation:
Example: Freeway has the following characteristics: a rolling

terrain with an ideal free flow speed of 120km/hr, right shoulder
lateral clearance of 1.2m and interchange density of 0.2. Traffic
consists of 10% trucks and buses and 8% recreational vehicles.
The adjustment for driver population factor is estimated to be
0.80 and that of trucks and buses is 2.5 and recreational vehicles
2.0. If the maximum 15min flow rate is 1760veh/hr, how many
number of lanes for the level of service B on a 1.7km segment?
Solution:
FFS = 120 -0.0-1.9-0.0-0.0 = 118.1km/hr
From table C2 for level of service B and speed of 118.1km/hr

Service Flow rate is 1299pc/hr
N = 2.09 3 lanes
Task 1: Using regression to determine the theoretical equation
that describes the speed as a function of density:
Plot the actual data and theoretical data and describe any
correlation.
Report all the important statistical results of the regression

analysis.
Task 2: Using histograms calculate and graph the following:
Flow; speed; occupancy.
Task 3: Using any analysis tools, plot: flow versus occupancy;

flow versus density; speed versus flow; speed versus
density.
Task 4: Write up a report stating the information specified
above, as well as your own conclusions about the data provided.
5.1 INTERSECTION DESIGN AND TIME BUDGET
CONCEPT
Intersection is regarded as the bottleneck in urban street

network. Based on definition given in Green Book, an
intersection is the general area where two or more highways join
or cross, including the roadway and roadside facilities for traffic
movements within it. The critical task of the traffic engineer is
to manage the conflicts occurred at intersections in a manner
that ensures safety and provides for efficient movement through
the intersection for both motorists and pedestrians.
5.1 A. Hierarchy of intersection control

Level I - basic rules of the road (keep left as on round about)
Level II direct assignment of right-of-way using YIELD or
STOP signs
Level III traffic signalization
Basic rules of the road
Drivers on the left must yield to the driver on the right; through
vehicles have the right-of-way over turning vehicles
5.1B. Advantages of Traffic control signals

1. Provide orderly movement
2. Enhance traffic-handling capacity
3. Reduce frequency and severity of crashes
4. Coordinate continuous movement along arterial
5. Protect pedestrians and bikers
5.1C. Disadvantages of Traffic control signals
1. Excessive delay
2. Excessive disobedience of the signal indications
3. Encourage cut-through traffic
4. Increase of rear-end collisions
Warrants for traffic signals (See Manual on Uniform Traffic
Control Devices (MUTCD))
It is required in MUTCD that a comprehensive engineering
study be conducted to determine whether or not installation of a
signal is justified. In addition, an engineering judgment also
plays an important role in the determination of signal
installation. It should be noted that signals should be installed
only where no other solution or form of control would be

effective in assuring safety and efficiency at the intersection.
5.1D. Some basic principles of signalized intersection design:
Key features of the MUTCD warrants are:

Warrant 1:
Eight-hour vehicular volume, met by 500-600 vehicles per hour
on the major street (both directions, two-four lanes respectively
and 150-200 vehicles on the minor street (major direction, onetwo lanes respectively) for any combination of 8 hours daily. A
variation (interruption of continuous traffic) warrant is met
with 750-900 vehicles hourly on major street (two-four lanes,
both directions), and 75-100 vehicles hourly (major direction,
one-two lanes), on the minor street.
Warrant 2:
Four-hour vehicular volume, met on two-lane streets when the
volume approaching the intersection on both major street
approaches combined plus the higher of the minor street
approaches is around 900 vehicles hourly, for four hours daily.
Warrant 3:
peak hour, met on two-lane streets when the volume
approaching the intersection on both major street approaches
combined plus the higher of the minor street approaches is
around 1200 vehicles in a single peak hour
Warrant 4:
Pedestrian volume, met with intersection or mid-block
pedestrian crossing volumes of at least 100 for each of four
hours, or 190 during any one hour, in combination with fewer
than 60 hourly gaps of adequate length to allow pedestrian
crossing when the volume criteria are satisfied.
Warrant 5:
School crossing met with the minimum of 20 students crossing
in the highest crossing hour, and less than one acceptable gap in
the traffic stream per minute during the highest crossing hour.
Engineering judgment and attention to other remedies (such as
crossing guards, improved signage, crossing islands) are
strongly recommended.
Warrant 6:
Coordinated traffic signal system, where existing traffic signal

spacing does not provide the necessary degree of platoon in
(grouping) of traffic, as needed to provide a progressive
operation
Warrant 7:
Crash experience, met when crash data indicates a problem
remediable by traffic signals.
Warrant 8:
Roadway network met, when the street has importance as
principal roadway network or is designated as a major route on
an official plan.
5.1E. Basic principles of intersection signalization
Traffic signal is regarded as the ultimate form of at-grade
intersection control due to the fact that it can greatly reduce the
number and nature of intersection conflicts as no other form of
control can.
Terms and definitions
i.
Cycle - one complete rotation through all of the indications

provided.
ii.
Cycle length - time that it takes to complete one full cycle
iii.
of indications, expressed in second.

Interval is - a period of time during which no signal
indication changes. It is the smallest unit of time described
within a signal cycle and has many forms within a signal
cycle as follows.
1. Change interval
is
the
yellow
indication
functioning as part of the transition from green to

red.
2. Clearance interval - is also part of the transition from
green to red for a given set of movements with
all red indication.
3. Green interval - is the period of time during which the
movements permitted have a green light, while all
other movements have a red light.
4. Red interval - is the period of time during which all
movements not permitted have a red light, while
those permitted to move have a green light.
iv. Phase consists of a green interval, plus the change and
clearance intervals that follow. It is a set of intervals that
allows a designated movement or set of movements to flow
and to be safely halted before release of conflicting set of
movements.
v. Saturation headway is defined as the headway by which a

queue of traffic stream at intersection is discharged in a
stable and saturated way. (This can be achieved after the
vi.
first 3 or 4 vehicles in the queue)

Saturation flow rate is the flow rate in an hour under
saturation headway and its mathematical expressed as
vii.
S/h=3600, h is the saturation headway.

Start-up lost time is the additional time involved in each
of initial headways (large than saturation headway),
viii.
symbolized by L1
Clearance lost time is defined as the time interval between
the last vehicles front wheels crossing the stop line and the
initiation of the GREEN for the next phase, symbolized by
ix.
L2
Effective green time is the amount of time that vehicles
are moving and expressed as
gi = Gi + Yi - Lti
gi = effective green time for movement i, in second
Gi = actual green time for movement i, in second
Yi = sum of yellow and all red intervals for movement i, in
second
Lti = total lost time for movement i, in second: It is the
addition of start-up lost time and clearance lost time,
namely Lti = L1+L2
x.
Capacity of an intersection lane or lane group is the

representation of the saturation flow rate as ci = si*gi/C
ci = capacity of lane or lane group i, veh/h
si = saturation flow rate for lane or lane group i, veh/hg
C = signal cycle length in second
5.1.1
INTERSECTION SIGNAL DESIGN
Procedure:
1. Determine Lost time per cycle ie one cycle length = Nphases:
L = N*Lt
2. Determine number of cycle per hour ie n = 3600/C
3. Determine total lost time per hour ie LH = N*Lt*3600/C
4. Signalizing effective time in one hour duration ie T actual = 3600
LH
Ta = 3600 N*Lt*3600/C
5. Capacity of signalized intersection
Vc = Ta/h = 1/h[3600 N*Lt*3600/C]
Vc = 3600/h[1 N*Lt/C]
Vc = S[1 N*Lt/C] Capacity of intersection
6. For efficient utilization of an intersection
i. To be designed during peak 15min ie PHF
ii. To be designed with reserve capacity ie v/c ratio (green
time ratio); when v/c 1 no reserve capacity at intersection
Desirable capacity at intersection
7. Determine desirable cycle length Cdes
Where: S Saturation flow rate

C Cycle length: N Number of phases: Lt Total lost time at
intersection: h saturation headway
5.1.2
SATURATION HEADWAY AND SATURATION

FLOW RATE CONCEPT
Headway is the measure of how the vehicles on queue depart at

intersection when they receive Green sign/indication.
Consider the diagram below:
On receiving green time indication through observing headways

between successive vehicles crossing the stop line.
First headway is the time from start of green time until when the
rear axle of the first vehicle crosses the stop line.
Second headway is the time taken when the rear axle of the first
vehicle crosses the stop line until when the rear axle of the
second vehicle crosses the stop line and so on.
A plot of successive headways
The time for the first vehicle is longer because of the reaction
time for the driver to realize the green light and also the
necessary time to accelerate until the rear axle crosses the stop
line.
The headways the rest of vehicles keep reducing because they
get used with the reaction time of the first driver moving with
mobilized acceleration.
Finally after the third or fourth vehicles entering the intersection
the headway gets leveled ie becomes constant.
The constant (leveled headway) is called saturation

headway. Therefore every vehicle entering an intersection
on average consumes h sec of green time.
The total vehicles entering an intersection for one hour at a
constant headway is called saturation flow rate ie S =
3600/h veh/hr/lane.
L1 =
L1 is the start up lost time
5.1.2A. Factors affecting Saturation Flow Rate
i.
ii.
Number of lanes
Lane width (ideal width 3.6m), small width saturation flow
rate will be small

iii. Traffic composition (percentage of heavy vehicles)
iv. Presence of parking lane
v. Presence of bus bay
vi. Approach grade at intersection
vii. Area type (CBD and outside CBD)
viii. The lane left and right turning movement
ix. Presence of pedestrian and bicycle crossing.
S = So*N*flw*fHV*fpl*fbb *fG *fa *fRT*fLT *fped*fpb
So = 1900 pc/hr/l (HCM 2000)
5.1.2B. The critical lane and time budget
The time budge is defined as the allocation of time to various

vehicular and pedestrian movements at an intersection through
signal control.
The critical lane is the identification of specific lane movements
that will control the timing of a given signal phase. It is the lane
with the most intense traffic demand, not the lane with the
highest volume.
a) There is a critical lane and a critical-lane flow for each
discrete signal phase provided.
b) Except for lost times, when no vehicles move, there must be
one and only one critical lane moving during every second of
effective green time in the signal cycle.
c) Where there are overlapping phases, the potential
combination of lane flows yielding the highest sum of critical
lane flows.
5.1.2C. Steps in Traffic Signal Design
1. Development of phase plan and sequence
2. Timing of yellow and all red interval for each phase
3. Determination of cycle length
4. Splitting the green: allocation of available effective green
to each of the phases
5. Checking and providing for pedestrian crossing needs

6. Checking the effects of right turn vehicles
Right turn vehicles may be protected when volume > 1000vph

Right turn vehicles must be protected when volume > 200 to
250vph
In between 100 to 200vph other factors may be considered ie
accident experience with through vehicles, sight distance
availability to the right turners and through flow etc.
Guidance: RTVxTHV > 50,000 needs protection to RTV and
when number of vehicles greater than 10vph needs protections
when the site distance is limited.
7. Treatment of left turns
Criteria of protected left-turn phase: LTV >=200 veh/h and or
LTV*(THV/N) >=50,000veh/h
Where: LTV- left-turn flow rate in vehicle per hour; THV opposing through movement flow rate in vehicle per hour;
N - number of lanes for opposing through movement
Apart from these two criteria, there are some criteria used when
protected left-turn phase is put into operation such as: speed
limit, left-turn crash rate, visibility etc.
Example: The following table gives the vehicle movements at

four leg intersection. The intersection layout below has the
following parameters; PHF = 0.9, the v/c ratio = 0.9 and left turn
vehicles shares lanes with through vehicles, number of
pedestrian is moderate (<50), average lost time per phase is 3sec
and saturation headway is 2.23veh/sec. Find suitable phase plan,
cycle length, signal timing and allocation of green time.
Approaches Movements Volume

ET
Volume
(V/hr) Factor (TCU)
EB
RT
35
140
TCU
Shared
Lanes
140
WB
SB
NB
TH
LT
RT
TH
LT
RT
TH
LT
RT
TH
LT
610
70
75
500
50
250
800
175
220
700
185
1
1.32
5
1
1.32
1.05
1
1.32
1.05
1
1.32
610
92
375
500
66
263
800
231
231
700
244
702
375
566
263
1031
231
944
Solution:
a. Check whether there is a need of right turn movement
protection
EB traffic: RTV =35 < 200veh/h No
WB traffic: RTV = 75 < 200veh/h No
SB traffic: RTV = 250 > 200veh/h Yes
NB traffic: RTV = 220 > 200veh/h Yes
b. Convert the vehicle per hour volume into through car
equivalent as in the table above; also take care the mixed
traffic ie heavy vehicle to passenger car units.
c. Develop suitable phase system and identify critical lane
volume.
d.
Desirable cycle length
= 65.7sec
Take C = 70sec.
e. Allocation of green time
The green time allocation should be proportioned to the
critical lane volumes
Gef = 70 3*3 = 61 sec
G(A) = 61*(263/1154) = 13.9sec
G(B) = 61*(516/1154) = 27.3sec
G( C) = 61*(375/1154) = 19.8sec
f. Convert Gef into Gactual
Gactual = Gef + Y - Lt
Where: Y = y + r: y- yellow interval, r all red intervals
The following equation is generally used to determine the proper
change interval
yr t
V
W L
2a 64.4 g
V
Where:
t = perception/reaction time of driver in seconds (typically taken
as 1.0 second); V = approach speed in feet per second; a =
deceleration rate in feet per second (typically taken as 10 feet/s 2
or one third of G=9.81m/s (32.18ft/s2)); W = Width of
intersection in feet; L = length of vehicle in feet (typically taken
as 20 feet);
g = approach grade, percent of grade divided by 100 (add for upgrade and subtract for downgrade)
g. Check for pedestrian provisions
The minimum green time for a phase is estimated by equation
given bellow.
Gp 3.2
L
Nped
2.7
, WE 10 ft
Sp
WE
Gp 3.2
L
0.27 Nped ,WE 10 ft (3m)
Sp
Where: Gp = minimum green time (s); L = crosswalk length (ft);

Sp = average speed of pedestrians (ft/s); WE = effective
crosswalk width (ft); 3.2 = pedestrian start-up time (s),
and Nped = number of pedestrians crossing during an
interval (p); 15th-percentile pedestrian speed is assumed
as 4.0 ft/s (1.2m/s).
The volume to capacity ratios of critical lanes group can be
determined from the following equation. This may give
indication the efficient of particular lane group on each
approach.
Where: Xi= ratio for lane group i; vi = actual or projected

demand flow rate for lane group i (veh/h); si = saturation
flow rate for lane group i (veh/h); gi = effective green time
for lane group i (s), and C = cycle length (s).
Sustainable values of Xi range from 1.0 when the flow rate
equals capacity to zero when the flow rate is zero. Values above
1.0 indicate an excess of demand over capacity.
5.1.2D. Compare the Cycle Length with that of using
Webster Model (Delay minimization)
Critical
phase Volume
(Vc)
263
516
375
Volume to
Saturatio capacity ratio
n flow (S) (v/c)
1615
0.16
1615
0.32
1615
0.23
Sum
0.71
: Set C = 65 sec.
5.1.2E. Level of service of Signalized Intersection based on
control delays
Delay as a measure of effectiveness based on Websters delay
models
a. Uniform delay model
UD= average uniform delay per vehicle, in s/veh

It should be noted that this average delay includes the vehicles
that arrive and depart on green, accruing no delay.
b. Random delay model
RD= average random delay per vehicle in s/veh
5.2 Land Transportation Terminals

Transportation terminals include buses terminals, airports,
railway
terminals,
harbors
and
parking
garage.
Land
transportation terminals may be required to perform the

following functions:
i. Traffic concentration Passengers arriving from different
places are grouped into batch movements, small shipments of
freights are grouped into large units for more efficient
handling.
ii. Processing this function includes ticketing, checking and
baggage handling for passengers and preparation of way bills
and other procedures for freights.
iii. Classification and sorting passengers and freights must be
classified and sorted into groups according to destination and
type of commodities.
iv.
Loading and unloading passengers and freights must be
moved from waiting rooms, loading platforms, temporary

storage areas by the transportation vehicle at the origin and
vice versa at the destination.
v.Storage facilities for short term storage such as waiting
rooms for passengers and transit sheds for freight commodities
and
required
for
assembling
by
concentration
and
classification.
vi. Traffic interchange passengers and freights arriving at a
terminal often transfer to a similar or different mode of travel
to complete the journey.
vii. Service availability terminals make the transportation
system and its services available to the shippers and the
travelling public.
viii. Maintenance and serving terminals often includes
facilities for fueling, cleaning, inspection and repair of
vehicles.
5.3 Essence of Terminal Planning Process
i. The objective of the terminal planners is to define the
optimum design ie sufficient in size and complexity to
provide suitable level of service for cheapest costs.
ii. The planners must first forecast the future level of activities at
the terminals such that number of passengers to be
accommodated, their patterns and modes of arrival and

departure and their needs while at the terminal; the volume of
freights, classified by commodities type, the patterns and
modes of shipments to and from the terminal.
iii. Terminal demand forecasting procedures vary depending
on the terminal type and size. This can be based on historical
data, empirical studies and extrapolation.
iv.In forecasting passenger terminal requirements, planners may
need to perform surveys of parkers and travelers to determine
current travel deficiencies and desires.
v. Planners of freight terminal facilities may base on the
forecasts on known or assumed relationships between tonnage
of freight and the volume of sales gross regional product or
other measures of economic growth.
vi. A terminal facility is usually designed to provide service
for 5 to 10 years in the future.
vii. It is not advisable to design for the absolute peak day or
hour demand- a typical peak hour demand is usually chosen
for passengers, similar to the 30th highest hourly traffic
volume recommended for highway design. A typical peak
daily traffic is recommended for estimating the level of freight
terminal activity.
viii. Number of vehicles or passengers arriving at the terminal is

not precisely predictable because of probabilistic nature of
arrivals and departures. Certain aspects of terminal operation
are analyzed through queuing or waiting time theory.
5.4 Queuing Theory
This is most useful for analysis of the behavior of simple
waiting lines or for studies of some components of more
complex operations.
The following are the characteristics of queue theorem should be
known or investigated.
i. The average rate at which units (people or vehicles or freights)
arrive for service and the probability distribution of the arrival.
ii. The mean (average) service rate and the probability
distribution of the services.
iii. The number of channels or servers (eg truck loading spots,
toll booths, etc) and whether the channels are arranged in
parallel (as in toll booth) or in series (as in vehicle repair
facility).
iv. The queue discipline ie the order in which arriving units be
served (first come first served).
a. Assumptions of Queue theory.
i. Both, arrival and service times are random variables ie arrivals

are the discrete random variables and services are continuous
random variables.
ii. Service rate exceeds arrival rates
iii. No limitation on queue lengths
b. Characterization of Queue line or Waiting time
The queuing system is said to be in a state n if there are n
units (people, vehicles, etc) in a the system, including those
being served. State probabilities are useful in evaluating the
effectiveness of various choices of terminal design features.
The other performance measures used for the evaluation of the
effectiveness of terminal design features are:
i. The number of units in the system
ii. Average length of queue
iii.
The average time spent in the queue.
c. Calculations of Queue Line
The units arriving at the terminal are described by the Poisson
probability distribution
Where: P(n) probability of n arrivals in a period t

mean arrival rate or volume

e Napierian logarithmic base
It may be advantageous to focus on the time interval or
headways between successive arrivals rather than the number of
arrival occurring during a stated interval of time. For a Poisson
process it can be shown that the probability density function of
interval times is:
The negative exponential distribution is commonly expressed as

a cumulative distribution function expressing the probability of
headway h being greater than or equal to it.
The distribution of service times is also best described by a

negative exponential distribution
Where: P(st) probability that a randomly chosen services s

will be equal to or greater that t
mean service time

Example 1: Queuing at the Parking Garage.
Vehicle arriving at the parking garage at an average rate of
45veh/hr are served by one attendant at an average rate of one
vehicle per minute. The arrivals may be described by a poisson
distribution and the service time by a negative exponential
distribution.
a. What is the probability the attendant will be idle?
b. If a second attendant is employed, what fraction of the time
will one or both of the attendants be idle?
Soln:
a.
Probability of having exactly n units in

system, for attendant to be idle n = 0.
= 0.25; 1veh/min = 60veh/hr.
b. The fraction of time that at least one attendant will be idle is

P(0) + P(1)
= 0.45
Example 2:
Vehicles arrive at an entrance to a national park. There is a
single gate (at which all vehicles must stop) where a ranger
distributes free brochures. The park opens at 8.00am and
vehicles arrive at an average flow rate of 180veh/hr. Over the
entire period until dosing time, if the average time required to
distribute the brochures is 15sec, describe the operational
characteristics assuming Poisson distribution of the arrivals and
negative exponential distribution of the service times.
Soln:
a. Average length of the queue (single channel)
b. Average waiting time (of arrivals) in a queue
c. Average time spent in the queue

Or Average time spent = waiting time in queue + service time
= 0.75 + 15/60 = 1min
5.5 PARKING PLANNING AND DESIGN
It is essential to provide for parking as part of road traffic
system, a need for parking increases as vehicle ownerships
increases.
5.5.1
Effects of Parking restraints
a. Loss of business/ trade due to lack of parking space in CBD
b. Some business owners may decide to relocate to other areas
c. Spill over effects on streets causing traffic congestions and
accidents.
The parking policy can be implemented for introducing price

mechanism such as charge for parking, parking meter/tickets,
parking permit or prohibit parking in certain areas.
5.5.2
Selecting location for Parking facilities
a. Study the activity centers ie identify activity centers that
needs for parking facilities.
b. Estimate extent of generated parking demand
c. Provide parking space within the reasonable walking space
(100-300m), if land is limited you can accept longer
walking distance.
5.5.3
On street Parking
On street parking is very significant for small streets
(towns) up to 90% but for busy towns the on street parking
is not effective.
Kerb parking should be considered for public transport
(daradara), emergency service (fire) etc.
Center of road parking to be considered for tax and
passenger cars (private cars) so as to enhance safety to
people.
At
this
location
parallel
parking
is
not
recommended because of difficult in maneuvering of

vehicles.
Bus stops located according to demand, but should not be
very close to the intersection, at least 50m from intersection
especially for signalized intersection. Also should be

located at the departure side to avoid long queue or in case
of many traffic turning right.
Parking duration limit for on street parking especially for
CBD is 15min to 2hours.
5.5.4
Design and operation of off street Parking
There is three alternatives of off street parking ie Surface
parking, multistory parking and underground parking. The
choice depends on the space availability, complexity of design
and construction and cost of developing and renting the facility.
The problem with parking facilities is to design parking layout
in order to maximize number of parking spaces obtained and
facilitate vehicle circulation and access to the parking spaces.
The common parking space layouts are angle parking and
perpendicular parking.
Recommended dimensions (ITE)
Parki Bay
Aisl Cro
ng
widt
e
ss
angle
h
Bay width widt are
h
a
Angl Perpendicu
(m) per
e
lar
bay
Aisl
Aisle(m)
45
60
90
e
(m)
3.7
3
2.6
4.7
5.3
5.7
4
5.5
8.5
Australia
recommendation
for angle parking
Aisl
Parki
e
Parki
ng
widt
ng
width
h
angle (m)
(m)
30
2.5
2.8
45
2.5
3.7
60
2.5
4.6
90
2.5
5.8
Australia recommendation for

minimum parking space and
circulation provision for
perpendicular parking
Space
One way aisle
width
width (m)
2.4
2.5
2.5
2.5
(m2)
29
27
26
2.6
2.7
5.5.5
2.5
2.5
PARKING STUDIES AND ANALYSIS
Definitions of terms
a. Space hour unit of parking that defines the use of a
single space of parking for a period of one hour.
b. Parking volume number of vehicles involved in
parking in a study area during a specific length of time
usually 1day
c. Parking accumulation number of parked vehicles in a
study area at a specific time (intervals of 1hour or 2hours
and draw the cumulative curve)
d. Parking lot area under accumulation curve between

two specific time
e. Parking duration length of time a vehicle is parked at
a parked bay
Where: N- number of parking vehicles during time interval

T(hours); s available spaces;
t- parking duration
limit per vehicle (hours); f- factor for parking efficiency

(0.80 to 0.95)
f. Parking turn over (PTO) rate of use of parking space
5.5.6
Parking studies
The following are the studies to be conducted for parking plan

and design.
Collection of data on parking accumulation, parking
turnover and parking duration.
Identify parking generators
Obtain information on parking demand ie make an
interview with people on when they come for parking and
make a records ( where do you come from, where is your
destination, what is your business, arrival and departure
time and his or her post card).
Inventory of existing parking spaces (ie type and number of

parking, information on methods of operation-free or
charged, owner of the parking)
5.5.7
Analysis of Parking data/information
Summarize the information/data and cording the information
and interpreting the data for implementation (decision and
design)
The information that is needed for decision and design
Number and duration of vehicles legally parked

Number and duration of vehicles illegally parked
Space hours of demand in parking
Supply of parking facilities
(i). Space hours of demand for parking D

Where: D Space vehicle hours of demand for specific period
of time; N Number of classes of parked duration ranges;
ti mid parking duration of the ith class; ni number of
vehicle parked for the ith duration range
(ii). Space hours of supply S
Where: S the practical number of space hours of supply for

specific period of time; N - number of parking space
availabe; ti total length of time in hours the i th space can
be legally parked during the specified period; f efficiency
factor (the average values are kerb parking=90%, garage =
80%, surface lots = 85%)
Example:
Consider a parking garage located in a city center (CBD) with
the following surveyed data: Between 8.00am to 6.00pm, 20%
of those wishing to park are turning back due to lack of space,
analysis indicated that 60% of those who park are commuters
with average parking duration of 9hours, 40% are shoppers with
average parking duration of 2hours. Those who can not park are
20% commuters and 80% shoppers; the number of vehicles
parked daily is 200. How many spaces are required to meet
demand?
Solution:
a. Total arrivals: Nt = 200*100/80 = 250veh
b. Vehicles not served NL = 250 200 = 50veh
c. Compute space hours of demand
Commuters served: D = 0.6*200*9 = 1080 space

hours
Shoppers served: D = 0.4*200*2 = 160 space hours
Commuters not served: D = 0.2*50*9 = 90 space
hours
Shoppers not served: D = 0.8*50*2 = 80 space hours
d. Total space hours of demand: D = 1080+ 160+ 90+ 80 =
1410 space hours
e. Total space hours served: D = 1080 + 160 = 1240 space
hours
f. Required space hours = 90+80 = 170 space hours
=170
Legal parking duration is 10hours (8am to 6pm)
S= 0.80* 10*N =170: N= 21.25
Provide 22 spaces as additional.
Home works.
1. The off street parking garage open between 7:00hours to
22:00hours. Between 8:00am to 5:00 pm 35% of those who
wish to park turned off due to overflow, 50% who parked
were commuters average parking duration is 8hours, 50%
shoppers with average parking duration of 3hours. 100% of

those who can not park are on business trip shopping. Total
number of vehicles parking daily is 500, how many spaces
are required to meet demand.
2.
Given below is the proposed parking arrangement of the

multistory garage with 3 floors for parking. Up to 12% of
floor space is columns and walls. The survey for parking
demand indicated that 480 vehicle needs parking places for
their shopping and office works, the proportion of shoppers
and works is 2.6: 4.2. The works needs 3.5 times parking
duration of the shoppers. The average parking duration for
shoppers is 2.5hours. What area is required for parking
facility?
References:
i. Khanna S.K and Justo C.E.E (1991), Highway Engineering
ii. Flaherty, Highway Engineering Vol. 1 and 2, Butler and

Tanner Ltd Great Britain
iii.
Robertson, Douglas H., Et. Al., Spot Speed Studies,
CH.3 of Manual of Transportation Engineering Studies,
Institute of Transportation Engineers, 1994, pp 33-51
iv.Highway Capacity Manual 2000.
v.Mimbela, and L., Klein, L. A Summary of Vehicle Detection
and Surveillance Technologies used in Intelligent
Transportation Systems. The Vehicle Detector
Clearinghouse, 2000.
vi.
A.S. Narasimha and Henry Mohle, Transportation
Engineering Basics, 1993
vii.
Tyburski, R., A review of Road Sensor Technology for
Monitoring Vehicle Traffic, ITE Journal, vol. 59, no. 8, p27.
Aug., 1989.
viii. Spot speed study workshop manual by Governors
Highway safety Bureau Executive Office of Public safety,
Boston, March 2005

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TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING

CODE: CEB 8241

The operation of transportation services is carried out by a

v.Trade associations that represents the interests of particular

Civil Engineering Department-MIST: By Duwa H.C

The planning and management responsibilities are divided

resources from one particular society to other. These resources

Social role of transportation

Transportation has always played an important role in

formation, size and pattern, and the development of societies,

iii. Political role of transportation

Environmental role of transportation

The negative effects of transportation are more dominating than

numerous categories into which the environmental effects have

contaminants into the atmosphere, including carbon monoxide,

sector is un-believed to consume more than half of the

Civil Engineering Department-MIST: By Duwa H.C

Aesthetics of a region is also affected by transportation. Road

Introduction to Transportation modes

The following are the major transport modes with their

v.Continuous flow systems includes pipelines for transporting

3.2 Transportation Systems

Civil Engineering Department-MIST: By Duwa H.C

transportation is usually thought of as the product of the

evaluating the capacity of existing roadways or designing new

Uninterrupted flow - is the flow regulated by vehicle to

Civil Engineering Department-MIST: By Duwa H.C

The speed of a vehicle is defined as the distance it travels per

Volume is simply the number of vehicles that pass a given point

Civil Engineering Department-MIST: By Duwa H.C

volume can be converted to a flow by multiplying the volume by

PHF (Peak Hour Factor)

This describes the relationship between hourly volume and the

Density refers to the number of vehicles present on a given

Clearance is similar to spacing, except that the clearance is the

Mean Speed-- the arithmetic mean of the speed of

those vehicles occupying a given length of road at a given

Spacing-- the distance between vehicles moving in the same

Civil Engineering Department-MIST: By Duwa H.C

Speed-- the time rate of change of distance.

Mean Speed-- the arithmetic mean of the speed of

vehicles passing a point during a given time interval.

Travel Time-- the total time required for a vehicle to travel

4.4 Speed-Flow-Density Relationship

Civil Engineering Department-MIST: By Duwa H.C

Because flow is the product of speed and density, the flow is

conditions, drivers no longer worry about other vehicles. They

Extremely high densities can bring traffic on a roadway to a

Civil Engineering Department-MIST: By Duwa H.C

Basic Flow Equations:

From figure b: v = A-B*k

Inserting Greenshields speed-density relationship into the

This indicates that the maximum flow occurs when traffic is

A timespace diagram is commonly used to solve a number of

Civil Engineering Department-MIST: By Duwa H.C

Time-space diagrams are created by plotting the position of each

propagates along a line of vehicles in response to changing

Civil Engineering Department-MIST: By Duwa H.C

Civil Engineering Department-MIST: By Duwa H.C

iv. Assessing the system performance eg measure speed or

Civil Engineering Department-MIST: By Duwa H.C

Traffic parameters (K and D) are required to convert AADT into

occurring during this hour is called the Design Hour Volume