Lecture Hour-4 Highway geometric design

Sub code: 10CV755

UNIT 1

1. Design Hourly Volume and capacity:

The general unit for measuring traffic on highway is the Annual Average Daily Traffic volume,
abbreviated as AADT. The traffic flow (or) volume keeps fluctuating with time, from a low value
during off peak hours to the highest value during the peak hour. It will be uneconomical to design the
roadway facilities for the peak traffic flow. Therefore a reasonable value of traffic volume is decided
for the design and this is called as Design Hourly Volume (DHV) which is determined from extensive
traffic volume studies. The ratio of volume to capacity affects the level of service of the road. The
geometric design is thus based on this design volume, capacity etc.

Volume design hourly volume: the traffic volume is the number of vehicles crossing a section of
road per unit time at any selected period. The volume is used as quantity of measure of flow and
measure in the unit vehicles per day or vehicle per hour
A complete traffic volume study may include the classified volume study by recording the
volume of various types and class of traffic the distribution by direction and turning movement and the
distribution on the different lanes per unit time

Objectives:
1. It gives the priority of improvement and expansion
2. Planning, traffic operation and control of existing facilities and also for the new facilities
3. Used in analysis of traffic patterns and trends
4. Structural design of pavement and in geometric design
5. One-way streets planning and other regulatory measures
6. Turning movement studies used in design of intersection in planning signal timing ,
channelization and other control devices
7. Pedestrian traffic volume a study is used in planning sidewalks, cross walks, subways,
pedestrians signals etc.
Capacity:
a) Traffic volume : The number of vehicles moving in a specified direction on a given
lane or roadway that passes a given point or cross section during specified unit of
time(V/h)
b) Traffic density: Number of vehicles occupying a unit length of road on a given
instant of time
Traffic volume= traffic density X speed of the vehicles

c) Traffic capacity: The ability of roadway to accommodate traffic. It is expressed as

maximum no. of vehicle on the lane pass at a given point at unit time.
d) Basic capacity: The maximum number of vehicle that can pass a given point on a
lane or roadway during one hour under the most nearly ideal roadway and traffic
condition.
e) Possible capacity: The maximum number of vehicles that can pass a given point on a
lane during one hour under most prevailing roadway and traffic condition
f) Practical capacity: The maximum number of vehicles that can pass a given point on
a lane during one hour , without the traffic density being too great as to cause
unreasonable delay, hazards and restrictions to the driver freedom to maneuvers under
the prevailing roadway and traffic condition.