Traffic Engineering

RCT 122

Lecture Note
 1. Traffic Characteristics
1.1 Importance of Traffic Characteristics
To begin to understand the functional and
operational aspects of traffic on streets and
highways it is important to understand how the
various elements of a traffic system interact.
Further, the characteristics of traffic streams are
heavily influenced by the characteristics and
limitations of each of these elements.
 Cont’d
There are five critical components that interact
in a traffic system:
• Road users - drivers, pedestrians, bicyclists,
and passengers
• Vehicles - private and commercial
• Streets and highways
• Traffic control devices
• The general environment
 Cont’d
Traffic engineering would be a great deal simpler
if the various components of the traffic system
had uniform characteristics. Traffic controls
could be easily designed if all drivers reacted to
them in exactly the same way. Safety could be
more easily achieved if all vehicles had uniform
dimensions, weights, and operating
characteristics.
 Cont’d
Drivers and other road users, however, have
widely varying characteristics. To compromise
these differences, the traffic engineer must deal
with elderly drivers as well as 18-year-olds,
aggressive drivers and timid drivers. Simple
subjects like reaction time, vision characteristics,
and walking speed become complex because no
two road users are the same. Most human
characteristics follow the normal distribution.
 Cont’d
Some control over the range of road-user and
vehicle characteristics is maintained through
licensing criteria and state standards on vehicle
design and operating characteristics.
While these are important measures, the traffic
engineer must still deal with a wide range of
road- user and vehicle characteristics.
Dealing with traffic, therefore, involves an
element of variability.
 Cont’d
A flow of water through channels and pipes of defined
characteristics will behave in an entirely predictable
fashion, in accord with the laws of hydraulics and fluid
flow.
A given flow of traffic through streets and highways of
defined characteristics will vary with both time and space.
Thus, the critical challenge of traffic engineering is to plan
and design for a medium that is not predictable in exact
terms-one that involves both physical constraints and the
complex behavioral characteristics of human beings.
 Cont’d
Fortunately, while exact characteristics vary,
there is a reasonably consistent range of driver
and, therefore, traffic stream behavior.
Drivers on a highway designed for a safe speed
of 60 mi/h may select speeds in a broad range
(perhaps 45-65 mi/h); few, however, will travel
at 80 mi/h or at 20 mi/h.
 Cont’d
In describing traffic streams in quantitative terms, the
purpose is to both understand the inherent variability
in their characteristics and to define normal ranges of
behavior.
To do so, key parameters must be defined and
measured.
Traffic engineers will analyze, evaluate, and ultimately
plan improvements in traffic facilities based on such
parameters and their knowledge of normal ranges of
behavior.
 Cont’d
Transportation (Traffic) Engineers must design facilities to
accommodate drivers who possess a wide range of skill
levels. Recommendations for Design Controls to Aid Elderly
Drivers
• Design for the 95th or 99th percentile driver. (i.e., the
elderly)
• Improve sight distances by modifying designs and removing
obstructions, particularly at intersections and interchanges.
• Assess sight triangles for adequacy at intersections,
interchanges and railroad crossings.
• Provide decision sight distances.
 Cont’d
•Simplify and redesign intersections and
interchanges that require multiple information
reception and processing.
• Consider alternate designs to reduce conflicts.
(i.e., channelization, grade separated roadways
etc.)
• Provide protected movements, particularly for
left turns.
•Eliminate yield situations
 Cont’d
The Human Response System:
Information is received by the driver through the
visual and auditory senses. Information can also
be received via vibrations (i.e., pavement
etching, raised pavement markers, etc.)
Research has shown that approximately 90% of
the information that a driver receives is visual.
 Cont’d
Visual Reception:
Visual Acuity:
• Ability of a person to see fine details of an object.
• Dynamic visual acuity refers to a driver’s ability to clearly
detect relatively moving objects not necessarily in the driver’s
direct line of vision.
• Most people can see clearly within a conical angle of 3º to
5° and fairly clearly within a conical angle of 10° to 12°. Vision
beyond this range is usually blurred.
• Important when determining the placement of traffic
information devices such as roadside signs.
 Cont’d
Peripheral Vision:
• The ability of a person to see objects beyond
the cone of clearest vision.
• Typically the cone for peripheral vision for a
driver is about 160°. This value depends on the
speed of the vehicle and the age of the driver.
 Cont’d
Glare Vision and Recovery:
• Glare Vision results in a decrease in ability for a driver to see and
causes discomfort for the driver.
• Glare Recovery is the time it takes for a driver to recover from the
effects of glare after passing a light source.
• Research has shown that the time to recover from dark to light
conditions is 3 seconds and 6 seconds to recover from light to dark
conditions.
• Glare Vision is a problem for older people who drive at night.
• Glare effects can be minimized by reducing the brightness of lights
and positioning lights further from the roadway and increasing the
height of the lights.
 Cont’d
Depth Perception:
• Depth Perception affects the ability of a driver to
estimate speed and distance.
• Extremely important on two-lane highways when a
vehicle is passing another vehicle with traffic approaching
the passing vehicle.
• The ability of a driver to estimate speed, distance, size
and acceleration is generally not very accurate. Traffic
control devices are standard in size, shape and color to
provide a wide range of drivers sufficient information to
make important decisions.
 Cont’d
• Hearing Perception:
• Typically hearing is only important when emergency
vehicles are sounding a warning to get out of their way.
• Vibrations (Sense of Touch):
• Highway Pavements have etching on the outside
edge of the shoulder to indicate to the driver that they
are leaving the pavement surface.
•Raised markers in pavements are used to indicate
that a reduction in speed is required on some
highways.
 Cont’d
The process through which a driver evaluates and
reacts to a stimulus. The time it takes to go through
this process is called a perception reaction time.
• Perception:
• Seeing a stimulus along with other perceived
objects.
• Out of the corner of your eye you see something
coming out of the woods towards you.
 Cont’d
• Identification:
• Identification and understanding of the stimulus.
Alternatives are developed.
• You realize that it is a deer about to cross the highway
in front of you.
• Emotion:
•Judgment is made as to the proper course of action. A
decision is made.
• You decide the best course of action is to change
direction and hopefully miss it.
 Cont’d
• Volition:
• Reaction or execution of decision.
Perception reaction time is used in the determination
of:
•Sight Distances: Stopping Sight Distance (SSD), Passing
Sight Distance (PSD) and Decision Sight Distance (DSD).
•Safe approach speeds at intersections and
interchanges.
•Timing of signals at railroad crossing.
• Traffic signal change intervals
 Cont’d
Perception reaction times determined from
research:
• 0.5 seconds to 0.75 seconds for most driving
tasks.
• 0.5 seconds up to 4 .0 seconds for complex
driving tasks.
• Perception reaction times are dependent upon
the driver’s rest, influence of alcohol and/or
drugs.
 Cont’d
AASHTO Design values:
• 2.5 seconds for computing stopping sight
distances.
• 2.0 seconds for intersection sight distance due
to the “degree of anticipation” of the driver
approaching an intersection.
 Cont’d
Distance traveled during Perception-Reaction
Time
Example: A driver with a perception-reaction
time of 2.5 seconds is driving at a constant
speed of 75 mph when he observes that an
accident has blocked the road ahead. Compute
the distance the vehicle would travel before
the driver could activate the brakes.
 Cont’d
Solution:
Distance = Velocity (Perception reaction time)
Must convert mph to feet per second
D = 75 miles/hour (5280 feet/mile) (1
hour/3600 seconds) (2.5 seconds)
D = 275 feet (before brakes are activated!)
 Cont’d
General Formula:
D = 1.47(V) (t)
Where: D is the distance in feet
V is the speed in mph
t is the perception-reaction time in seconds.
 Cont’d
The three levels of the driving task:
• Control:
• Includes basic steering and speed control.
• Guidance:
• Includes road-following, car-following, overtaking and
passing, merging, lane changing and responding to traffic
control devices.
• Navigation:
• Includes trip planning and route following. The driving
task can be complex and demanding on the driver.
 Cont’d
1.2 Static and dynamic characteristics of vehicle
1.2.1 Static Characteristics:
• Weight and size of the vehicle
Dimensions.
Length, width, and height are restricted by law so
that motor vehicles will fit geometric standards of
the highway system. Trucks and buses of maximum
legal dimensions are common, and there is
constant pressure of rising of these limits.
 Cont’d
Representative Sample of AASHTO Design Vehicles:
 Cont’d
b) Turning radii and rare wheel truck in path determines the minimum
radii used in the design of short radius curves, channelization, and
parking facilities.
c) Under clearance is important in designing vertical curves at
driveways and on parking ramps. These characteristics change with the
design of vehicles.
d)The weight of the vehicle is limited to fit the structural standards of
pavements and bridges. Weight limits are usually specified both per
wheel and per axle, with spacing between adjacent axles. In many
countries follows the following maximum weight limitation:
• Maximum weight per axle = 9.1 t (20,000 lb).
• Maximum weight per tandem axle = 15.4 t (34,000 lb).
• Maximum total gross weight = 36.3 t (80,000 lb).
 1.2.2 Dynamic Characteristics

Figure 3.6: Forces Acting on a Moving Vehicle

 Cont’d
Air Resistance
A vehicle in motion has overcome the resistance
of the air in front of it as well as the forces due
to the fractional action of the air around it. The
forces required to overcome these is known as
the air resistance and is related to the cross-
sectional area of the vehicle in a direction .
 Cont’d
As shown
in the following equation :
R = air resistance force (lb)
ρ = density of air (0.0766 lb/ft3 at sea level; less at higher
elevations
CD = aerodynamic drag-coefficient (current average value for
passenger cars is 0.4; for trucks, this value ranges from 0.5 to
0.8, but a typical value is 0.5)
A = frontal cross-sectional area (ft)
u = vehicle speed (mph)
g = acceleration of gravity (32.2 ft/sec) 2
 Cont’d
Air Resistance:
 Cont’d
Rolling Resistance:
Sum of internal friction of moving parts plus
frictional slip between the pavement and the
tires.
For Passenger Cars:
 Cont’d
Rr = rolling resistance force (lb)
C rs= constant (typically 0.012 for passenger C
Crv= constant (typically 0.65 X 10 passenger
cars)
u = vehicle speed (mph)
W = gross vehicle weight (lb)
 Cont’d
Rolling Resistance
This forces that offer resistance to motion. These
forces are due to mainly to fractional effect on
movement parts of the vehicle, but also include
the fractional slip between the pavement
surface and the tire. The sum effect of the forces
on motion is known as rolling resistance .It is
depend on the speed of vehicle and the type of
pavement .
 Cont’d
Rolling Resistance:
For Trucks:
 Cont’d
Rr = rolling resistance force (lb)
Cd = constant (typically 0.02445 for trucks)
u = vehicle speed (mph)
W = gross vehicle weight (lb)
Rolling Resistance is dependent on the condition
of the roadway. For example, at a speed of 50 mph
on a badly broken and patched asphalt surface,
the rolling resistance is 51 lb/ton of weight.
 Cont’d
Curve Resistance
When a vehicle maneuvered to take a curve, external
forces act the front wheels of the vehicle. These
forces have component that have a retarding effect
on the forward motion of the vehicle. The sum effect
of these components continues the curve resistance.
This resistance depends on the radius of the curve .
the gross weight of the vehicle and the velocity at
which the vehicle is moving and can be determined in
the following equation :
 Cont’d

R c= curve resistance force (lb)

u = vehicle speed (mph)
W = gross vehicle weight (lb)
g = acceleration of gravity (32.2 ft/sec2 )
R = radius of curvature (ft)
 Cont’d
Grade Resistance
When a vehicle move up a grade, a component
of the weight of the vehicle acts downward,
along the plane 0f the highway. This creates a
force acting in a direction opposite that of the
motion . A vehicle traveling up a grade will
therefore tend to lose speed unless an
acceleration force is applied.
 Cont’d
Grade Resistance:
RG = WG
W = weight of vehicle (lbs)
G = grade (decimal)
If the vehicle is operating on a downgrade then
RG must be subtracted from R to compute the
power requirement.
 Cont’d
Power Requirements
Power is the rate at which work is done. It is usually
expressed in horsepower . Where 1 horsepower is 550
ib-ft/sec. The performance of vehicle is measured in
term of the horsepower the engine can produce to
overcome air, grade, curve and friction resistance forces .

P = horsepower delivered (hp)

R = sum of resistance to motion (lb)
u = speed of vehicle (mph)
 Cont’d
Braking Distance:
Equation for a Complete Stop:
 Cont’d
Equation for a reduction in speed:
 Cont’d
Example : Determine the horsepower produced by
passenger car traveling at a speed of 65mi/h on
straight road of 5%grade with a smooth
pavement .Assume the weight of the car is 4000 Ib
and the cross-sectional area of the car is 40 ft 2
Solution :
Note that there is no curve resistance since the road is
straight.
R= (air resistance) + (rolling resistance) + (grade
resistance)
Cont’d
 Chapter 2. Traffic survey
2.1 Data collection and analysis
 Measurement at a Point
Introduction
The data required by a traffic engineer can mainly be observed on field rather
than at laboratory.
Now the field studies can be classified into three types depending upon the
length of observation:
 Measurement at a point
 Measurement over a short section
 Measurement over a long section
Out of these we will be discussing the first type here.
 Flow is the main traffic parameter measured at a point.
 Flow can be defined as the no of vehicles passing a section per unit time.
 Traffic volume studies are mainly carried out to obtain factual data
concerning the movement of vehicles at selected point on the street or
highway system.
 Cont’d
2.1.1Basic concepts
Types of Volume Measurement
Volume count varies considerably with time. Hence, several types of
measurement of volume are commonly adopted to average these
variations. These measurements are described below:
 Average Annual Daily Traffic (AADT)
This is given by the total no. of vehicles passing through a section in a
year divided by 365.
This can be used for following purposes:
 Measuring the present demand for service by the street or highway
 Developing the major or arterial street
 Evaluating the present traffic flow with respect to the street system
 Locating areas where new facilities or improvements to existing
facilities are needed.
 Cont’d

 Average Annual Weekday Traffic (AAWT)

This is defined as the average 24-hour traffic volume occurring on
weekdays over a full year.
 Average Daily Traffic (ADT)
An average 24-hour traffic volume at a given location for some
period of time less than a year.
It may be measured for six months, a season, a month, a week, or
as little as two days. An
ADT is a valid number only for the period over which it was
measured.
 Average Weekday Traffic (AWT)
An average 24-hour traffic volume occurring on weekdays for some
period of time less than one year, such as for a month or a season.
 Cont’d
2.1.2 Type of Counts
Various types of traffic counts are carried out, depending on the anticipated use
of the data to be collected. They include:
 Cordon Count
These are made at the perimeter of an enclosed area (CBD, shopping center
etc.). Vehicles or persons entering and leaving the area during a specified time
period are counted.
 Screen Line Count
These are classified counts taken at all streets intersecting an imaginary line
(screen line) bisecting the area. These counts are used to determine trends,
expand urban travel data, traffic assignment etc.
 Pedestrian Count
These are used in evaluating sidewalk and crosswalk needs, justifying pedestrian
signals, traffic signal timings etc.
 Intersection Count
These are measured at the intersections and are used in planning turn
prohibitions, designing channelization, computing capacity, analyzing high
accident intersections etc.
 Cont’d
2.1.3 Counting Techniques
Number of vehicles can be counted either manually or by machine
depending upon the duration of study, accuracy required, location of
study area etc.
 Manual counting
 In its simplest form an observer counts the numbers of vehicles along
with its type, passing through the section for a definite time interval.
 For light volumes, tally marks on a form are adequate. Mechanical or
electrical counters are used for heavy traffic.
 Although it is good to take some manual observations for every
counting for checking the instruments.
 some other specific uses of manual counts are following:
 Turning and through movement studies
 Classification and occupancy studies
 For analysis of crosswalks, sidewalks, street corner space and other
pedestrian facilities
 Cont’d
 Automatic counting
These can be used to obtain vehicular counts at non-intersection points.
Total volume, directional volume or lane volumes can be obtained
depending upon the equipment available.
 Permanent Counters
These can be mainly grouped into contact types, pulsed types, radar types.
 Among the contact type counters, pneumatic tubes are mostly used. Air
pulse actuated by vehicle wheels, pass along the tube thereby increasing
the count.
 Pulsed types mainly depend upon the interruption of a beam generated
from a station located near the site, which is detected by the receiver.
 In radar types, a continuous beam of energy is directed towards the
vehicle.
 Portable Counters
These are used to obtain temporary or short term counts. Generally these
make use of a transducer unit actuated by energy pulses. Each axle or
vehicle passage operates a switch attached to a counter which is usually set
 Cont’d
2.1.4 Counting Periods
 Counting periods vary from short counts at spot points to
continuous counts at permanent stations.
 Hourly counts are generally significant in all engineering design,
while daily and annual traffic is important in economic
calculations, road system classification and investment
programmes.
Some of the more commonly used intervals are:
 24-hour counts normally covering any 24-hour period between
noon Monday and noon Friday. If a specific day count is desired,
the count should be from midnight to midnight.
 16 hour counts usually 5:30 am to 9:30 pm or 6 am to 9 pm.
 12 hour counts usually from 7 am to 7 pm
 Peak Period counting times vary depending upon size of
metropolitan area, proximity to major generators and the type of
facility. Commonly used periods are 7 to 9 am and 4 to 6 pm
 Cont’d
2.1.5 Variation of Volume Counts and Peak Hour Factors
 Variation of volume counts can be further sub-divided into
daily, weekly and seasonal variation.
 For studying the daily variation, the flow in each hour has
been expressed as percentage of daily flow.
 Weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays usually show different
patterns.
 Peak Hour Volume is very important factor in the design of
roads and control of traffic, and is usually 2 - 2.5 times the
average hourly volume.
 Apart from this there is one additional feature of this
variation: two dominant peaks (morning and evening
peak), especially in urban areas.
 Cont’d

Peak hour factors should be applied in most capacity

analyses in accordance with the Highway Capacity
Manual, which selected 15 minute flow rates as the
basis for most of its procedures. The peak-hour factor
(PHF) is descriptive of trip generation patterns and may
apply to an area or portion of a street and highway
system. The PHF is typically calculated from traffic
counts. It is the average volume during the peak 60
minute period Vav60 divided by four times the a
maximum volume during the peak 15 minute’s period V
max15 .
Cont’d
 Cont’d
Numerical Example
The table below shows the volumetric data observed at an
intersection. Calculate the peak hour volume, peak hour factor (PHF),
and the actual (design) flow rate for this approach.
Solution we can locate the hour with the highest volume and the 15
minute interval with the highest volume. The peak hour volume is just
the sum of the volumes of the four 15 minute intervals within the
peak hour (219). The peak 15 minute volume is 65 in this case. The
peak hour factor (PHF) is found by dividing the peak hour volume by
four times the peak 15 minute volume.

The actual (design) flow rate can be calculated by dividing the peak
hour volume by the PHF, 219/0.84 = 260 vehicles/hr, or by multiplying
the peak 15 minute volume by four, 4 × 65 = 260 vehicles per hour.
 Cont’d

2.1.6 Over a Short Section

The main purpose of this topic is to determine
traffic parameter, specially speed.
Speed measurements are most often taken at
a point (or a short section) of road way under
conditions of free flow.
The intent is to determine the speeds that
drivers select, unaffected by the existence of
congestion.
 Cont’d
2.1.6.1 Speed Studies
 The actual speed of traffic flow over a given route may
fluctuated widely, as because at each time the volume of
traffic varies.
 Accordingly, speeds are generally classified into three main
categories
 Spot speed this is the instantaneous speed of a vehicle at any
specific location.
 Running speed this is the average speed maintained over a
particular course while the vehicle is in the motion.
 Journey speed This is the effective speed of the vehicle on a
journey between two points and the distance between two
points, and the distance between these points divided by the
total time taken for the vehicle to complete the journey.
 Cont’d
2.1.9Measurement along a Length of Road
Overview
 This is normally used to obtain variations in speed over a stretch of road. Usually
the stretch will be having a length more than 500 meters.
 We can also get speed, travel time and delay. Speed and travel time are the most
commonly used indicators of performance for traffic facilities and networks.
 Delays are often used to measure the performance of traffic flow at intersections.
2.1.10 Travel time study
 Travel time is the elapsed time it takes for a vehicle to traverse a given segment of
a street.
 Travel time studies provide the necessary data to determine the average travel
time.
 Combined with the length of the corridor under study, this data can be used to
produce average travel speed.
 Since vehicle speed is directly related to travel time and delay, it is also an
appropriate measure-of-performance to evaluate traffic systems.
 Travel time may be defined as the total elapsed time of travel, including stop and
delay, necessary for a vehicle to travel from one point to another point over a
specified route under existing traffic condition.
 Cont’d
2.1.11Delay studies
Delay is defined as an extra time spent by drivers
against their expectation.
Delay can have many forms depending on
different locations.
A study made to provide information concerning
the amount, cause, location, duration and
frequency of delay as well as travel time and
similar value.
The time lost by traffic due to traffic friction and
traffic control device is called delay.
 Cont’d
2.1.12 Types of Delay
 Congestion delay- Congestion delay is the delay caused by the constricting
or slowing down effect of overloaded intersections, inadequate
carriageway widths, parked cars, crowded pavement and similar factor.
 Fixed Delay- The delay to which a vehicle is subjected regardless of the
amount of traffic volume and interference present.
 Operational Delay-The delay caused by interference from other
component of the traffic stream. Examples include time lost while waiting
for a gap in a conflicting traffic stream, or resulting from congestion,
parking maneuvers, pedestrians, and turning movement.
 Stopped Delay- The time a vehicle is not moving.
 Travel Time Delay- The difference between the actual time required to
traverse a section of street or highway and the time corresponding to the
average speed of traffic under uncongested condition.
 Approach Delay -Travel time delay encountered to an approach to an
intersection.
 Cont’d

2.1.13 Purpose of travel time and Delay Studies

The purpose of a Travel Time and Delay Study is to
evaluate the quality of traffic movement along a
route and determine the locations, types, and extent
of traffic delays by using a moving test vehicle.
This study method can be used to compare
operational conditions before and after roadway or
intersection improvements have been made.
The Travel Time and Delay Study can also be used by
planners to monitor level of service for local
government comprehensive plans.
 Cont’d
2.1.13.1 Method for obtaining travel time and delay study
1. Floating Car Method:
 Floating car data are positions of vehicles traversing city streets
throughout the day.
 In this method the driver tries to float in the traffic stream
passing as many vehicles as pass the test car.
 If the test vehicle overtakes as many vehicles as the test vehicle
is passed by, the test vehicles should, with sufficient number of
runs, approach the median speed of the traffic movement on
the route.
2. Average Speed Method:
 In this method the driver is instructed to travel at a speed that
is judge to the representative of the speed of all traffic at the
time.
 Cont’d
3. Moving-vehicle method:
 In this method, the observer moves in the traffic stream and makes a
round trip on a test section.
 The observer starts at section, drives the car in a particular direction
say eastward to another section, turns the vehicle around drives in the
opposite direction say westward toward the previous section again.
4. Maximum-car method:
 In this procedure, the driver is asked to drive as fast as is safely
practical in the trffic stream without ever exceeding the design speed
of the facility.
5. Elevated Observer method:
 In urban areas, it is sometime possible to station observers in high
buildings or other elevated points from which a considerable length of
route may be observed.
 These investigator select vehicle at random and record time, location,
and causes of delay.
 Cont’d
2.1.14 Spot Speed Study
 Spot Speed is the average speed of vehicles passing a point, or
the time mean speed.
 Spot Speed studies are conducted to estimate the distribution
of speeds of vehicles in a stream of traffic at a particular
location on a highway.
 This is carried out by recording the speeds of a sample of
vehicles at a specified location.
Application of Spot Speeds
1. Speed Limit Studies
2. Establishing Speed Trends
3. Specific Design Applications
4. Specific Control Applications
5. Investigation of High Accident Locations
 Cont’d
Time and duration
 The time of day for conducting a speed study depends on
the purpose of the study.
 In general, when the purpose of the study is to establish
posted speed limits, to observe speed trends, or to collect
basic data, it is recommended that the study be conducted
when traffic is free flowing, usually during off-peak hours.
 Typically, the duration is at least 1 hour and the sample
size is at least 30 vehicles.
Data Presentation
The speed data can be presented by:
1. Frequency Distribution Table, and
2. Frequency and Cumulative Frequency Distribution Curves.
 Cont’d

1. Frequency Distribution Table

•The individual speeds of vehicles collected
from the field are used to prepare the frequency
distribution table.
•The frequency distribution table shows the
total number of vehicles observed in each speed
group.
•Speed groups of more than 5 mph are not
used.
Cont’d
Cont’d
 Cont’d
2. Frequency and Cumulative Frequency
Distribution Curves
 Curves are prepared from the Frequency Distribution Table.
 Once the points are plotted, they are connected by a smooth
curve. They are usually plotted one above the other, using
the same horizontal axis for speed.
 The frequency distribution curve plots points which represent
the middle speed of each speed group versus the %
frequency in the speed group.
 Since the cumulative % frequency is defined as the
percentage of vehicles traveling at or below a given speed,
the cumulative frequency distribution curve plots the upper
limit of the speed group (NOT the middle speed).
Cont’d
 Cont’d

 Precision and Confidence Interval

The confidence interval for the true mean is
 Cont’d
For the example problem, standard deviation of
the sample is 4.94 mph, sample size is 283, and
the sample mean speed is 48.1 mph.
 The 95% confidence interval for the true mean
speed is 48.1± 1.96(0.294) mph or from 47.52
mph to 48.68 mph.
 Therefore, we can be 95% confident that the
true mean speed would be between 47.52
mph and 48.68 mph.
 Cont’d
2.2 Forecasting Future Traffic Flows
2.2.1 Basic principles of traffic demand analysis
 If transport planners wish to modify a highway
network either by constructing a new roadway
or by instituting a programme of traffic
management improvements, any justification
for their proposal will require them to be
able to formulate some forecast of future
traffic volumes along the critical links.
 Cont’d

 Particularly in the case of the construction of a

new roadway, knowledge of the traffic volumes
along a given link enables the equivalent number
of standard axle loadings over its lifespan to be
estimated,
 leading directly to the design of an allowable
pavement thickness, and provides the basis for
an appropriate geometric design for the road,
 leading to the selection of a sufficient number of
standard width lanes in each direction to provide
the desired level of service to the driver.
 Cont’d

 The prediction of highway demand requires a unit of

measurement for travel behavior to be defined.
 This unit is termed as trip and involves movement
from a single origin to a single destination.
 The parameters utilized to detail the nature and
extent of a given trip are as follows:
Purpose
Time of departure and arrival
Mode employed
Distance of origin from destination
Route travelled.
 Cont’d
2.2.1.3 Trip generation
 Trip generation models provide a measure of the rate at which
trips both in and out of the zone in question are made.
 They predict the total number of trips produced by and attracted
to its zone.
 Centers of residential development, where people live, generally
produce trips.
 The more dense the development and the greater the average
household income is within a given zone, the more trips will be
produced by it.
 Centers of economic activity, where people work, are the end
point of these trips.
 The more office, factory and shopping space existing within the
zone, the more journeys will terminate within it.
 Cont’d
 It is an innately difficult and complex task to predict
exactly when a trip will occur.
 This complexity arises from the different types of trips that
can be undertaken by a car user during the course of the
day (work, shopping, leisure, etc.).
 The process of stratification attempts to simplify the
process of predicting the number and type of trips made
by a given zone.
 Trips are often stratified by purpose, be it work, shopping
or relaxation.
 Different types of trips have different characteristics that
result in them being more likely to occur at different times
of the day.
 Cont’d
 The peak time for the journey to work is
generally in the early morning, while shopping
trips are most likely during the early evening.
 Stratification by time, termed temporal
aggregation, can also be used, where trip
generation models predict the number of trips
per unit timeframe during any given day.
 Cont’d

Within the context of an urban transportation

study, three major variables govern the rate at
which trips are made from each zone within the
study area:
 Distance of zone from the central business
district/city center area
 Socio-economic characteristics of the zone
population (per capita income, cars available per
household)
 Intensity of land use (housing units per hectare,
employees per square meter of office space).
 Cont’d

 The relationships between trips generated and the relevant

variables are expressed as mathematical equations, generally in
a linear form.
 For example, the model could take the following form:

Where
Tij = number of vehicle trips per time period for trip type i (work,
non-work) made by household j
Z = characteristic value n for household j, based on factors such as
the household income level and number of cars available within it.
∝=regression coefficient estimated from travel survey data relating
to n A typical equation obtained for a transportation study might
be:
 Cont’d

A typical equation obtained for a transportation

study might be:

where
T = total number of trips per household per 24 hours
Z = family size
Z1= total income of household
Z2= cars per household
Z4= housing density
 Cont’d
 For a given trip generation equation, the coefficients
can be assumed to remain constant over time for a
given specified geographical location with uniform
demographic and socio-economic factors.
 For example, the more people within a household
and the more cars available to them, the more trips
they will make; say we define 15 subgroups in terms
of two characteristics – numbers within the
household and number of cars available and we
estimate the number of trips each subgroup is likely
to make during the course of the day.
 Cont’d
2.2.1.4 Trip distribution
2.2.1.4. a Introduction
The previous model determined the number of trips produced by
and attracted to each zone within the study area under scrutiny.
 For the trips produced by the zone in question, the trip
distribution model determines the individual zones where each
of these will end.
 For the trips ending within the zone under examination, the
individual zone within which each trip originated is determined.
 The model thus predicts zone-to-zone trip interchanges.
 The process connects two known sets of trip ends but does not
specify the precise route of the trip or the mode of travel used.
 These are determined in the two last phases of the modeling
process.
 Cont’d
 The end product of this phase is the formation
of a trip matrix between origins and
destinations, termed an origin-destination
matrix. Its layout is illustrated in Table 2.3.
 There are several types of trip distribution
models, including the gravity model and the
Furness method.
 Cont’d

Table 2.3 Origin destination Matrix (e.g. T14 =

number of trips originating in zone 1 and
ending in zone 4)
 Cont’d
2.2.1.4 .b The gravity model
 The gravity model is the most popular of all the trip distribution
models.
 It allows the effect of differing physical planning strategies, travel
costs and transportation systems to be taken into account.
 Within it, existing data is analyzed in order to obtain a relationship
between trip volumes and the generation and attraction of trips
along with impedance factors such as the cost of travel.
 The name is derived from its similarity to the law of gravitation put
forward by Newton where trip interchange between zones is
directly proportional to the attractiveness of the zones to trips,
and inversely proportional to some function of the spatial
separation of the zones.
 Cont’d

The gravity model exists in two forms:

Where
T = trips from zone i to zone j
Aj = trip attractions in zone j
Pi= trip productions in zone i
Fij = impedance of travel from zone i to zone j
 Cont’d
2.3 Measurement of traffic parameters
2.3.1 General
 The traffic stream includes a combination of driver and
vehicle behavior.
 The driver or human behavior being non-uniform,
traffic stream is also non-uniform in nature. It is
influenced not only by the individual characteristics of
both vehicle and human but also by the way a group of
such units interacts with each other.
 Thus a flow of traffic through a street of defined
characteristics will vary both by location and time
corresponding to the changes in the human behavior.
 Cont’d
 The traffic engineer, but for the purpose of planning and design,
assumes that these changes are within certain ranges which can
be predicted.
 For example, if the maximum permissible speed of a highway is 60
kmph, the whole traffic stream can be assumed to move on an
average speed of 40 kmph rather than 100 or 20 kmph.
 Thus the traffic stream itself is having some parameters on which
the characteristics can be predicted.
 The parameters can be mainly classified as: measurements of
quantity, which includes density and flow of traffic and
measurements of quality which includes speed.
 The traffic stream parameters can be macroscopic which
characterizes the traffic as a whole or microscopic which studies
the behavior of individual vehicle in the stream with respect to
each other.
 Cont’d
 As far as the macroscopic characteristics are
concerned, they can be grouped as
measurement of quantity or quality as
described above, i.e. flow, density, and speed.
 While the microscopic characteristics include
the measures of separation, i.e. the headway or
separation between vehicles which can be
either time or space headway.
 The fundamental stream characteristics are
speed, flow, and density and are discussed
below.
 Cont’d
2.3.2.1 Spot Speed
 Spot speed is the instantaneous speed of a vehicle at a specified
location.
 Spot speed can be used to design the geometry of road like horizontal
and vertical curves, super elevation etc.
 Location and size of signs, design of signals, safe speed, and speed zone
determination, require the spot speed data.
 Accident analysis, road maintenance, and congestion are the modern
fields of traffic engineer, which uses spot speed data as the basic input.
 Spot speed can be measured using an enoscope, pressure contact tubes
or direct timing procedure or radar speedometer or by time-lapse
photographic methods.
 It can be determined by speeds extracted from video images by
recording the distance travelling by all vehicles between a particular
pair of frames.
 Cont’d

2.3.2.2 Running speed

Running speed is the average speed maintained
over a particular course while the vehicle is
moving and is found by dividing the length of the
course by the time duration the vehicle was in
motion. i.e. this speed doesn’t consider the time
during which the vehicle is brought to a stop, or
has to wait till it has a clear road ahead.
The running speed will always be more than or
equal to the journey speed, as delays are not
considered in calculating the running speed.
 Cont’d
2.3.2.3 Journey speed
 Journey speed is the effective speed of the vehicle on a
journey between two points and is the distance between
the two points divided by the total time taken for the
vehicle to complete the journey including any stopped
time.
 If the journey speed is less than running speed, it
indicates that the journey follows a stop-go condition with
enforced acceleration and deceleration.
 The spot speed here may vary from zero to some
maximum in excess of the running speed.
 Uniformity between journey and running speeds denotes
comfortable travel conditions.
 Cont’d

2.3.2.4 Time mean speed and space mean speed

Time mean speed is defined as the average speed
of all the vehicles passing a point on a highway
over some specified time period. Space mean
speed is defined as the average speed of all the
vehicles occupying a given section of a highway
over some specified time period. Both mean
speeds will always be different from each other
except in the unlikely event that all vehicles are
traveling at the same speed.
 Cont’d
Time mean speed is a point measurement while space mean
speed is a measure relating to length of highway or lane, i.e. the
mean speed of vehicles over a period of time at a point in space
is time mean speed and the mean speed over a space at a given
instant is the space mean speed.
2.3.3 Flow
There are practically two ways of counting the number of
vehicles on a road. One is flow or volume, which is defined as
the number of vehicles that pass a point on a highway or a given
lane or direction of a highway during a specific time interval. The
measurement is carried out by counting the number of vehicles,
nt, passing a particular point in one lane in a defined period t.
Then the flow q expressed in vehicles/hour is given by

q=nt/t
 Cont’d

2.3.3.2 Density
Density is defined as the number of vehicles occupying a
given length of highway or lane and is generally expressed as
vehicles per km. One can photograph a length of road x, count
the number of vehicles, nx, in one lane of the road at that
point of time and derive the density k as,
k=nx/x
The density is the number of vehicles between the point A
and B divided by the distance between A and B. Density is
also equally important as flow but from a different angle as it
is the measure most directly related to traffic demand. Again
it measures the proximity of vehicles in the stream which in
turn affects the freedom to maneuver and comfortable
driving.
 Cont’d

2.3.3.3Time headway
The microscopic character related to volume is the time
headway or simply headway. Time headway is defined as the
time difference between any two successive vehicles when they
cross a given point. Practically, it involves the measurement of
time between the passage of one rear bumper and the next
past a given point. If all headways h in time period, t, over
which flow has been measured are added then

But the flow is defined as the number of vehicles nt

measured in time interval t, that is,
 Cont’d

Where, hav is the average headway. Thus

average headway is the inverse of flow. Time
headway is often referred to as simply the
headway
 Cont’d

2.3.3.4 Distance headway

Another related parameter is the distance headway. It is defined
as the distance between corresponding points of two successive
vehicles at any given time. It involves the measurement from a
photograph, the distance from rear bumper of lead vehicle to
rear bumper of following vehicle at a point of time. If all the
space headways in distance x over which the density has been
measured are added,
Where, sav is average distance headway. The average
distance headway is the inverse of density and is
sometimes called as spacing.
2.3.3.5 Travel time
Travel time is defined as the time taken to complete a
journey. As the speed increases, travel time required
to reach the destination also decreases and vice versa.
Thus travel time is inversely proportional to the speed.
However, in practice, the speed of a vehicle fluctuates
over time and the travel time represents an average
measure.
 Cont’d
2.3.4 Generation of traffic congestion
The change in transport system causes a change in
transport behavior and locational pattern of the
system. The change in household characteristics,
transport behavior, locational pattern, and other
growth effects result in the growth of traffic. But
the change or improvement in road capacity is only
as the result of change in the transportation system
and hence finally a situation arises where the traffic
demand is greater than the capacity of the
roadway. This situation is called traffic congestion.
 Cont’d
2.3.4.1 Effects of congestion
Congestion has a large number of ill effects on drivers,
environment, health and the economy in the
following ways.
• Drivers who encounter unexpected traffic may be
late for work and other appointments causing a loss in
productivity and their valuable time.
• Since congestion leads to increase in travel time i.e.,
vehicles are made to travel for more time than
required which consumes large amount of fuel there
by causing fuel loss and economic loss to the drivers.
 Cont’d
• One of the most harmful effects of traffic congestion is its
impact on the environment.
Despite the growing number of vehicles, a car stopped in
traffic still produces a large volume of harmful carbon
emissions. Increase in pollutants (because of both the
additional fuel burned and more toxic gases produced while
internal combustion engines are in idle or in stop-and-go
traffic)
• Drivers who become impatient may be more likely to drive
aggressively and dangerously and leads to high potential for
traffic accidents
• Negative impact on people’s psychological state, which
may affect productivity at work and personal relationships
 Cont’d
• Slow and inefficient emergency response and delivery services
• Decrease in road surface lifetime: When a vehicle moves over
the surface, the areas of contact (where the vehicles’ tyres touch
the road) are deflected downwards under the weight of the
vehicle and as the vehicle moves forward, the deflection corrects
itself to its original position.
• Vehicle maintenance costs; ’Wear and tear’ on mechanical
components of vehicles such as the clutch and brakes is also
considerably increased under stop-start driving conditions and
hence increasing the vehicle maintenance costs.
• One beneficial effect of traffic congestion is its ability to
encourage drivers to consider other transportation options like a
subway, light rail or bus service. These options reduce traffic on
the roads, thereby reducing congestion and environmental
pollution.
 Cont’d

2.3.4.2 Traffic congestion

A system is said to be congested when the demand
exceeds the capacity of the section. Traffic congestion can
be defined in the following two ways:
1. Congestion is the travel time or delay in excess of that
normally incurred under light or free flow traffic
condition.
2. Unacceptable congestion is travel time or delay in
excess of agreed norm which may vary by type of
transport facility, travel mode, geographical location, and
time of the day.
Traffic congestion may be of two types:
 Cont’d
1. Recurrent Congestion: Recurrent congestion generally
occurs at the same place, at the same time every weekday
or weekend day. This is generally the consequence of factors
that act regularly or periodically on the transportation
system such as daily commuting or weekend trips. Recurrent
congestion is predictable and typically occurs during peak
hours. It displays a large degree of randomness in terms of
duration and severity.
2. Non-Recurrent congestion: Non-Recurrent congestion is
the effect of unexpected, un-planned large events( road
woks, accidents, special events and so on) that affect
transportation system more or less randomly and as such,
cannot be easily predicted.
 Cont’d

2.3.4.3 Measurement of congestion

Need and uses of congestion measurement
Congestion has to be measured or quantified in order to
suggest suitable counter measures and their evaluation.
Congestion information can be used in a variety of policy,
planning and operational situations. It may be used by public
agencies in assessing facility or system adequacy, identifying
problems, calibrating models, developing and assessing
improvements, formulating programs policies and priorities.
It may be used by private sector in making locational or
investment decisions. It may be used by general public and
media in assessing traveler’s satisfaction.
 Cont’d

2.3.4.4 System performance measurement

Performance measure of a congested roadway
can be done using the following four
components:
1. Duration,
2. Extent,
3. Intensity, and
4. Reliability.
 Cont’d
Duration
Duration of congestion is the amount of time the congestion
affects the travel system. The peak hour has now extended to
peak period in many corridors. Measures that can quantify
congestion include:
• Amount of time during the day that the travel rate
indicates congested travel on a system element or entire
system.
• Amount of time during the day that traffic density
measurement techniques (detectors, aerial surveillance, etc.)
indicate congested travel.
Duration of congestion is the sum of length of each analysis
sub period for which the demand exceeds capacity.
 Cont’d

This component measures the performance of a

particular road in handling traffic efficiently i.e., with
the increase in the duration of congestion, poorer
will be the performance of the transportation
system. The maximum duration on any link indicates
the amount of time before congestion is completely
cleared from the corridor. Duration of congestion
can be computed for a corridor using the following
equation: For corridor analysis,
 Cont’d
Where, H is the duration of congestion (hours), N is the
number of analysis sub periods for which v/c > 1, and T is
the duration of analysis sub-per iod (hours). For area wide
analysis,

where, Hi is the duration of congestion for link i (hours), T is

the duration of analysis period (hours), r is the ratio of peak
demand to peak demand rate, vi is the vehicle demand on
link I (veh/hr), and ci is the capacity of link i (veh/hr).
 Cont’d

Queue density default values

 Cont’d

Extent
Extent of congestion is described by estimating the
number of people or vehicles affected by
congestion and by the geographic distribution of
congestion. These measures include:
1. Number or percentage of trips affected by
congestion.
2. Number or percentage of person or vehicle
meters affected by congestion.
3. Percentage of the system affected by congestion.
 Cont’d
Performance measures of extent of congestion
can be computed from sum of length of queuing
on each segment. Segments in which queue
overflows the capacity are also identified. This is
useful for ramp metering analysis. To compute
queue length, average density of vehicles in a
queue need to be known. Queue length can be
found out using the equation:
 Cont’d
Where; QLi is the queue length (meter), v is the segment demand
(veh/hour), c is the segment capacity (veh/hour), N is the number
of lanes, ds is the storage density (veh/meter/lane), and
T is the duration of analysis period (hour). If v < c, Qi=0 the
equation for queue length is similar for both corridor and area-
wide analysis.
Numerical example
Consider a road segment of 6 lanes with a capacity of 2400
veh/hr/lane. It is observed that the storage density is 75
veh/meter and the segment demand is found to be 2800
veh/hr/lane.
Given that the duration of analysis sub period is 2 hrs calculate
the queue length that is formed due to congestion.
 Cont’d
Solution The queue length of a particular road segment is
given by,

It is given that Number of lanes, N=6, Duration of analysis sub

period, T= 2 hrs, Segment Capacity=c=2400 veh/hr/lane,
Segment Demand=v=2800 veh/hr/lane, Storage Density=ds=75
veh/ meter. Now, the queue length can be calculated by using
the above formula as follows:

=10.667mts Therefore, the extent of congestion in terms of

queue length is 10.667mts.
 Cont’d
Intensity
Intensity of congestion marks the severity of congestion.
It is used to differentiate between levels of congestion
on transport system and to define total amount of
congestion. It is measured in terms of:
• Delay in person hours or vehicle hours;
• Average speed of roadway, corridor, or network;
• Delay per capita or per vehicle travelling in the
corridor, or per person or per vehicle affected by
congestion;
• Relative delay rate (relative rate of time lost for
vehicles);
 Cont’d
Intensity in terms of delay is given by,

Where, DPH is the person hours of delay, TPH is the person

hours of travel under actual conditions, and T0 PH is the
person hours of travel under free flow conditions. The TPH is
given by:

Where, OAV is the average vehicle occupancy, v is the

vehicle demand (veh), l is the length of link (km), and S is the
mean speed of link (km/hr). The TPH is given by:
 Cont’d

Where, OAV is the average vehicle occupancy, v

is the vehicle demand (veh), l is the length of link
(km), and S0 is the free flow speed on the link
(km/hr).
 Cont’d
Numerical example
On a 2.8 km long link of road, it was found that the demand is
1000 Vehicles/hour mean speed of the link is 12 km/hr, and
the free flow speed is 27 km/hr. assuming that the average
vehicle occupancy is 1.2 person/vehicle, calculate the
congestion intensity in terms of total person hours of delay.
Solution: Given data: Length of the link=l=2.8 km, Vehicle
demand=v=1000 veh, Mean
Speed of the link=S=12 km/hr, Free flow speed on the link=
so=27 km/hr, and Average Vehicle
Occupancy= OAv=1.2 person/veh. Person hours of delay are
given as:
 Cont’d
Person hours of travel under actual conditions,

Therefore, person hours of delay can be calculated as follows,,

DPH = = 280 − 124.4
= 155.6 person hours
= 156 person hours (approx).
Hence, the intensity of congestion is determined in terms of
person hours of delay as 156 person hours.
 Cont’d

2.3.5 Parking Studies

Overview
Parking is one of the major problems that is
created by the increasing road traffic. It is an
impact of transport development. The
availability of less space in urban areas has
increased the demand for parking space
especially in areas like Central business district.
This affects the mode choice also. This has a
great economic impact
 Cont’d
Parking system
On street parking
On street parking means the vehicles are parked on
the sides of the street itself. This will be usually
controlled by government agencies itself. Common
types of on-street parking are as listed below. This
classification is based on the angle in which the
vehicles are parked with respect to the road
alignment. The standard dimensions of a car is taken
as 5× 2.5 meters and that for a truck is 3.75× 7.5
meters.
 Cont’d
1. Parallel parking: The vehicles are parked along the
length of the road. Here there is no backward movement
involved while parking or unparking the vehicle. Hence,
it is the most safest parking from the accident
perspective. However, it consumes the maximum curb
length and therefore only a minimum number of vehicles
can be parked for a given kerb length. This method of
parking produces least obstruction to the on-going traffic
on the road since least road width is used. Parallel
parking of cars is shown in figure below.
The length available to park N number of vehicles, L =
N/5.9
 Cont’d
2. 30◦ parking: In thirty degree parking, the vehicles are parked at 30◦ with
respect to the road alignment. In this case, more vehicles can be parked
compared to parallel parking.

Illustration of parallel parking

Illustration of 30◦ parking

 Cont’d

Also there is better maneuverability. Delay caused to the

traffic is also minimum in this
type of parking.
3. 45◦ parking: As the angle of parking increases, more
number of vehicles can be parked.
4. 60◦ parking: The vehicles are parked at 60◦ to the
direction of road. More number of vehicles can be
accommodated in this parking type.
5. Right angle parking: In right angle parking or 90◦
parking, the vehicles are parked perpendicular to the
direction of the road. Although it consumes maximum
width kerb.
 Cont’d

Illustration of 45◦ parking

Illustration of 60◦ parking.

 Cont’d

length required is very little. In this type of parking, the vehicles

need complex maneuvering and this may cause severe accidents.
This arrangement causes obstruction to the road traffic
particularly if the road width is less. However, it can
accommodate maximum number of vehicles for a given kerb
length. Length available for parking N number of vehicles is L =
2.5N.
Off street parking
In many urban centers, some areas are exclusively allotted for
parking which will be at some distance away from the main
stream of traffic. Such a parking is referred to as off-street
parking. They may be operated by either public agencies or
private firms. A typical layout of an off-street parking is shown in
figure below.
 Cont’d

Illustration of 90◦ parking

Illustration of off-street parking

 Cont’d

Parking requirements
There are some minimum parking requirements for
different types of building. For residential plot area less
than 300 sq.m require only community parking space. For
residential plot area from 500 to 1000 sq.m, minimum one-
fourth of the open area should be reserved for parking.
Offices may require at least one space for every 70 sq.m as
parking area. One parking space is
enough for 10 seats in a restaurant where as theatres and
cinema halls need to keep only 1 parking space for 20
seats. Thus, the parking requirements are different for
different land use zones.
 Cont’d
Ill effects of parking
Parking has some ill-effects like congestion, accidents,
pollution, obstruction to fire-fighting operations etc.
1. Congestion: Parking takes considerable street space leading
to the lowering of the road capacity. Hence, speed will be
reduced, journey time and delay will also subsequently
increase. The operational cost of the vehicle increases leading
to great economical loss to the community.
2. Accidents: Careless maneuvering of parking and unparking
leads to accidents which are referred to as parking accidents.
Common type of parking accidents occur while driving out a
car from the parking area, careless opening of the doors of
parked cars, and while bringing in the vehicle to the parking lot
for parking.
 Cont’d

3. Environmental pollution: They also cause

pollution to the environment because stopping and
starting of vehicles while parking and unparking
results in noise and fumes. They also affect the
aesthetic beauty of the buildings because cars
parked at every available space creates a feeling that
building rises from a plinth of cars.
4. Obstruction to firefighting operations: Parked
vehicles may obstruct the movement of firefighting
vehicles. Sometimes they block access to hydrants
and access to buildings.
 Cont’d
Parking statistics
Before taking any measures for the betterment of conditions,
data regarding availability of parking space, extent of its
usage and parking demand is essential.
Parking surveys are intended to provide all these information.
Since the duration of parking varies with different vehicles,
several statistics are used to access the parking need. The
following parking statistics are normally important.
1. Parking accumulation: It is defined as the number of
vehicles parked at a given instant of time. Normally this is
expressed by accumulation curve. Accumulation curve is the
graph obtained by plotting the number of bays occupied with
respect to time.
 Cont’d
3. Parking load: Parking load gives the area under the
accumulation curve. It can also be obtained by simply
multiplying the number of vehicles occupying the
parking area at each time interval with the time
interval. It is expressed as vehicle hours.
4. Average parking duration: It is the ratio of total
vehicle hours to the number of vehicles parked.
 Cont’d

5. Parking turnover: It is the ratio of number of vehicles parked

in duration to the number of parking bays available. This can be
expressed as number of vehicles per bay per time duration.

6. Parking index: Parking index is also called occupancy or

efficiency. It is defined as the ratio of number of bays occupied in
a time duration to the total space available. It gives an aggregate
measure of how effectively the parking space is utilized. Parking
index can be found out as follows:
 Cont’d

Numerical Example
To illustrate the various measures, consider a small example in
figure 41:7, which shows the duration for which each of the bays
are occupied(shaded portion). Now the accumulation graph
can be plotted by simply noting the number of bays occupied at
time interval of 15, 30, 45 etc. minutes is shown in the figure.
The various measures are calculated as shown below: Parking
 Cont’d

Parking surveys
Parking surveys are conducted to collect the above said
parking statistics. The most common parking surveys
conducted is in-out survey, fixed period sampling and
license plate method of survey.
 Cont’d
In-out survey
In this survey, the occupancy count in the selected parking
lot is taken at the beginning. Then the number of vehicles
that enter the parking lot for a particular time interval is
counted. The number of vehicles that leave the parking lot is
also taken. The final occupancy in the parking lot is also
taken. Here the labor required is very less. Only one person
may be enough. But we wont get any data regarding the time
duration for which a particular vehicle used that parking lot.
Parking duration and turnover is not obtained. Hence we
cannot estimate the parking fare from this survey. For quick
survey purposes, a fixed period sampling can also be done.
 Cont’d

This is almost similar to in-out survey. All vehicles are counted

at the beginning of the survey.
Then after a fixed time interval that may vary between 15
minutes to i hour, the count is again taken. Here there are
chances of missing the number of vehicles that were parked for
a short duration.
Numerical Example
From an in-out survey conducted for a parking area consisting
of 40 bays, the initial count was found to be 25. Table gives the
result of the survey. The number of vehicles coming in and out
of the parking lot for a time interval of 5 minutes is as shown in
the table below. Find the accumulation, total parking load,
average occupancy and efficiency of the parking lot.
Cont’d
 Cont’d

• Accumulation can be found out as initial count plus

number of vehicles that entered the parking lot till that
time minus the number of vehicles that just exited for that
particular time interval. For the first time interval of 5
minutes, accumulation can be found out as 25+3-2 =
26. It is being tabulated in column 4.
• Occupancy or parking index is given by equation For the
first time interval of five minutes, Parking index = 26/40 ×
100 = 65%. The occupancy for the remaining time slot is
similarly calculated and is tabulated in column 5. Average
occupancy is the average of the occupancy values for each
time interval. Thus it is the average of all values given in
column 5 and the value is 80.63%.
 Cont’d

• Parking load is tabulated in column 6. It is

obtained by multiplying accumulation with the
time interval. For the first time interval, parking
load = 26 × 5 = 130 vehicle minutes.
• Total parking load is the summation of all the
values in column 5 which is equal to 1935
vehicle minutes or 32.25 vehicle hours
 Cont’d
Solution The solution is shown in table
In-out parking survey solution