Traffic Survey Methods

Introduction
y Traffic volume is the number of vehicles crossing a

section of road per unit time at any selected period. y The units used are vehicles per day & vehicles per hour. y Traffic volume is used as quantity measure of flow. The main theme is to design a path so that maximum number of vehicles can flow through.

Methods
y Manual Count Techniques y Portable Count Techniques y Permanent Counts

1.Manual Count Techniques

y There is a variety of equipment available to assist manual counts y The simplest of these involve mechanical hand-counters that can be

used individually y In order to obtain continuous count information on a common basis, short breaks are introduced into the counting procedure. Such breaks must be systematic and uniform for all observers.

(Mechanical hand-counters)

y Location of count must be clearly identified, y Specific movements, lanes, and/or classification included on the field

sheet must be noted. y Weather, roadway conditions, and traffic incidents or accidents occurring during the count should be noted.
y Observers name must be noted. y Date and time of study and of specific counts Counting periods must be

identified and linked y Each sheet should have page x of y noted.

2.Portable Count Techniques

y The most frequently used portable equipment involves the use of y

y y y

pneumatic road tubes. Tubes are fastened across the pavement. As vehicles pass over the tube, an air(or pneumatic pulse) is created in the tube. The pulse can be sensed by a variety of counters connected to the tube. Counters were electromechanical and were capable of accumulating total counts and/or of summarizing them on a punch tape at prescribed intervals. Accumulate a total count for the period of the study Accumulate a total count, recording the total on a daily basis Accumulate a total count, recording the accumulated total at prescribed intervals.

(Portable Count Techniques)

3.Permanent Counts
y Few permanent count locations are installed specifically for the

purpose of conducting traffic counts. y Modern actuated signals, toll collection systems, and traffic management systems all contain detectors that can also be employed as permanent Counters. y The vast majority of detectors used are magnetic-loop detectors, although other technologies are available and used in some locations

Limited network volume study

Illustrative study

yOne day study plan yMulti-day study plan

One day study plan

y It is possible to complete the study in a single day. y One of the two available crews or set-ups would be used to count

Control Location A for the entire 8-hour period of the study. y The second crew or set-up would be used to count each of Coverage Locations 1-6 for one hour. y The data collected is displayed in next table In hourly and daily basis.

Multi day plan

y Given the limitation to two simultaneous counts due to personnel and/or

equipment, such a study would take place over six days. y One crew would monitor the control location for the entire period of the study, while the second would count at one coverage location for eight hours on each of six days. y Unfortunately, the counts are spread over six days, over which volume may vary considerably at any given location. In this case, the control data is used to quantify the underlying daily variation pattern. This data is used to adjust the coverage data. y Daily volume variations are quantified in terms of adjustment factors defined as follows: the volume for a given day multiplied by the factor yields a volume for the average day of the study period. Stated mathematically:

Va = volume for the average day of the study period, Vi = volume for day I F = adjustment factor for day I vi

Calibrating Daily Variation Factors

y At a permanent count location, data exists for all 52 weeks of the year

(i.e., for 52 Sundays, 52 Mondays, 52 Tuesdays, etc.). y The base value for factor calibration is the average of the seven daily averages, which is a rough estimate of the AADT. y Daily adjustment factors can also be computed from the results of major and/or minor control counts. In a major control count, there would be 12 weeks of data, one week from each month of the year. The daily averages, rather than representing 52 weeks of data, reflect 12 representative weeks of data. The calibration computations, however, are exactly the same.

reference
y High way capacity manual y Traffic engineering , by roger P.roess, Elena

S.Prassas, William R.Mcshane