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Example
 Design the pavement for construction of a new
bypass with the following data:
 Two-lane carriageway, Distribution Factor=0.75
 Initial traffic in the year of completion of construction
=400 CVPD (Sum of both direction)
 Traffic growth rate=7.5%
 Design life 15 years
 VDF based on axle load survey=2.5 standard axle per CV
(commercial vehicle)
 Design CBR of sub-grade soil =4%
Total pavement thickness
for CBR=4% is 660mm
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 1

Solution
365 * [(1  r ) n  1]
N * initial traffic * DF * VDF
r
 Distribution factor = 0.75 DF=Distribution Factor
VDF=Vehicle Damage Factor

365 * [(1  0.075)  1]

15
N * 400 * 0.75 * 2.5
0.075
N  7,200,000  7.2msa

 Total pavement thickness for CBR = 4% and traffic 7.2 msa

from IRC:37 2001 chart1 = 660 mm
 Pavement composition can be obtained by interpolation from
pavement design catalogue
 Bituminous surface = 25 mm SDBC + 70 mm DBM
 Road base = 250 mm
 Subbase = 315 mm granular material of CBR not less than 30%
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 2

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 Design Hour Volume, DHV is a two-way traffic volume that is determined by

multiplying the ADT by a percentage called the K-factor.
 Values for K typically range from 7 to 12 % for urban facilities and 12 to 25% for rural
facilities.

 Directional Design Hour Volume, DDHV is the one-way volume

in the predominant direction of travel in the design hour,
expressed as a percentage of the two-way DHV. For rural and
suburban roads, the directional distribution factor (D) ranges from
50 to 80 percent. DDHV=ADT (or AADT)*K*D
DHV  K * AADT
DDHD  D * DHV  K * D * AADT
Relationships
Facility Type Normal Range of Factors
K D
Rural 0.15-0.25 0.65-0.80
Sub-urban 0.12-0.15 0.55-0.65
Urban 0.07-0.12 0.50-0.60

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 3

Subjects Cover Today

• Traffic Flow
• Flow Characterization & Parameters
• Traffic Parameters
• Volume and Rate of Flow
• Speed (Time and Space Mean Speeds) and Example
• Density
• Ancillary Traffic Flow Characteristics, Example

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 4

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Lesson 3:
q  k .v
Traffic Flow

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 5

Traffic Flow
Introduction
• Traffic data - a crucial importance in
• Concerned with the study of traffic flow on
highway design- both current and
and through various traffic facilities such future estimate.
as:-  Traffic data requires - monitoring
 Freeways (or expressway) and forecasting
 Signalized intersections, and • Traffic volume indicates the service
 Un-signalized intersections- for better for which the highway is being
designing of traffic facilities. planned and directly affects the
• Study of traffic flow is imperative for better geometric features such as width,
designing of traffic facilities. alignments, grades etc.
• The general unit for measuring traffic on
highway is the AADT, ADT
• A commonly used unit for geometric design
is the 30th highest hourly volume, 30HV
– For average Americans conditions, the 30
HV is about 15% of the AADT in the case
for Rural Highways and is about 8-12% of
AADT in case of Urban Streets.

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 6

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Flow Characterization & Parameters

• The condition of any traffic
stream can be defined by
two stream variables
– Speed and Density
• Speed- average speed of the
vehicle moving in that
stream and density of the
traffic stream is defined as
the average number of
vehicles per unit length of
the stream.
• Traffic flow is a difficult
phenomenon to describe
without the use of a
common set of terms.
Feb-13
Density (k) - the number of vehicles occupying
a road lane per unit length at a given instant
(vehicles/unit length) or concentration.
High densities indicate that individual
vehicles are very close together, while low
densities imply greater distances between
vehicle.
Flow (q)– the number of vehicles passing a
point per unit of time; often called Volume
when the time unit is one hour
(vehicles/unit time).
Jam density – the density when speed and flow
are zero.
Gap(g) – the time interval between the passage
of consecutive vehicles moving in the same
stream, measured between the rear of the
lead vehicle and the front of the following
vehicle. Gap is usually reported in units of
seconds.
Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 7

Traffic Parameter
PHF (peak hour factor) – this describes the
relationship between hourly volume and the
maximum rate of flow within hour:
PHF = hourly volume/maximum rate of
flow. For the 15 minute periods,
PHF = volume/4x(maximum 15 minute
volume within the hour)
Spacing (s)– the distance between vehicles
moving in the same lane, measured between
corresponding points (front to front) of
consecutive vehicles. Spacing is the product
of speed and headway.
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.
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP
Space mean speed – the arithmetic
mean of the speed of those
vehicles occupying a given
length of road at a given instant
(SMS).
Time mean speed – the arithmetic
mean of the speed of vehicles
passing a point during a given
time interval (TMS).
Headway (h) – the time interval
between passage of consecutive
vehicles moving in the same
stream, measured between
corresponding points (front
bumper) on a successive
vehicles
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• Traffic stream - A group of

individual drivers and vehicles,
interacting with one another and
with elements of the road and
driving environment.
• Traffic stream consists of:-
– The driver
– The vehicle
– The environment
• Traffic performance is impacted
by
– Carriageway width
– Number of lanes
– Vertical and horizontal alignment
– Type and condition of surface
– Frequency and type of
intersections
– Road furniture
– Terrain, and
– Other conditions eg. Weather,
lighting, signage, parking.

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 9

Gap, g
&
Clearance, c L

Spacing & Headway (h)

• Spacing (s) (space headway) – Distance from point 1 to

point 2; ≈ the reciprocal of density
• Headway (h) (time headway) – Time for front of vehicle 2
to reach point 1; ≈ the reciprocal of flow rate
- c= s-L=g*v, g=h-(L/v)
- s = v*h(t)
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 10

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v i

vt  u TMS  i 1
n

n*L
vs  u SMS  n

ti 1
i

Vs=space mean speed

Vt=time mean speed
L=length of highway section
Each thin line represents the trajectory of a vehicle over time n=number of vehicles observed
The speed of a traffic stream is an average speed of all the
vehicles in the stream. The speed Vi of a vehicle i in a stream of
n vehicles can be averaged in one of two ways as shown:-
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 11

Example
• Three vehicles traversed a 1 Km segment of a
freeway in 1.2, 1.5 and 1.7 minutes,
respectively. What is the average travel speed
of three vehicles? 40.91Km/h

• Three vehicles pass a fixed location on

Norodom Blvd at 50, 40 and 35 Km/h,
respectively. What is the time mean speed of
the three vehicles? 41.67Km/h

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 12

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Speed/Travel Time Example

• Blue car – 60 minutes (1 hr)

• Red car – 36 minutes (0.6 hr)
• Average speed ?

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 13

Special Speed & Density Condition

• The discussion of the speed-flow- • Jam density- extremely high

density relation mentioned several densities can bring traffic on a
speed-density conditions. roadway to a complete stop. The
density at which traffic stops is
• Free Flow Speed- this is mean called the jam density.
speed that vehicles will travel on
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, the
posted speed limit.

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 14

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Traffic Composition

• Traffic composition has a vital No. Vehicle Type PCU

effect on capacity and other 1 Passenger car, pick up van 1.00

2 Motorcycle, cycle or scooter 0.50
design considerations. Traffic is 3 Truck Bus 3.00
heterogeneous (various) in 4 Agriculture tractor, light
commercial vehicle 1.50
character, consisting of fast 5 Bullock-cart 6.00-8.00
driven cars, trucks, buses…
• Traffic volume expresses in
terms of the passenger car units,
pcus

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 15

Example
• An existing rural road going through a plain terrain
with hardly any curves and bends is to be upgraded so
as to form a part of an expressway. The annual
average daily traffic (AADT) on this section is
expected to be 27,000 vehicles per day with the
following mix:
– Motorized two-wheelers (18%)
– Passenger cars (35%)
– Light commercial vehicles and tractors (30%)
– Trucks and buses (17%).

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 16

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Solution
• Whenever the flow consists of a variety of vehicles, it is only
logical that they be converted to a single vehicle type (generally a
passenger car) for the purposes of uniformity and ease of
computation (otherwise we would have to list capacity and
service flow value for every type of vehicle mix-which is not
feasible).
• The conversion is done using passenger car equivalence factors
obtained from empirical data on vehicle size and performance.
These factors, for Indian conditions are provided in IRC codes,
we get:
(0.18*0.5+0.35*1.0+0.3*1.5+0.17*3.0)*27000 = 37,800 passenger cars per day.

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 17

Types of Traffic Flow

• Traffic flow can be divided
into two primary types:-
– Uninterrupted flow is the
flow regulated by vehicle-
vehicle interactions and
interactions between vehicle
and the roadway. i.e vehicles
traveling on an highway are
participating in uninterrupted
• Under interrupted flow
conditions, vehicle-vehicle
interactions and vehicle-
roadway interactions play a
secondary role in defining
the traffic flow.
v

flow.
– Interrupted flow is the flow L Spacing, S
regulated by an external
means such as traffic signal,
transit station and the like.

Vehicle following concept

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 18

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Types of Traffic Facilities

Uninterrupted • No external factors to cause

flow facility periodic interruption of flow.
• Traffic flow is a product of
interaction between vehicles and
geometric and environment
E.g. Basic sections of a freeway
Interrupted flow • Have external devices that
facility periodically interrupt traffic flow
• Constant stopping and restarting
needed
E.g. Urban streets and arterials
Remember it does not mean the quality of operation.
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 19

Volume and Rate of Flow

• Volume – actual number of
units observed to be passing a • Example: calculate the rate of
point during a given time flow of vehicles from the
following data. What is the
• Rate of flow – number of units hourly traffic volume?
passing a point during a time
interval less than 1 hour but
expressed as an equivalent Time period Volume (vehicles)
hourly rate
– Example – volume of 200 4:00-4:15 700
vehicles in 10 minutes period 4:16-4:30 812
implies a rate of flow: 200 x
60/10=1200 vph 4:31-5:00 1635

Volume = 3147 vph

Rate of flow = 700x60/15=2,800 vph

812x60/15=3248 vph
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP
1635x60/30=3270 vph 20

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Speed
• Speed is important for
economic operation and has a
great bearing on the safety of
highway- geometric design
• Measurement of the speed of
an individual vehicle requires
observation over both time and
Time & Space Mean Speeds
Time mean speed, Vt-measure the speed
of each vehicle passing a given point
(spot speed) on a road during a
selected time period
n

space.
 (v 1  v 2  ...  vn )
vt  1
n
• The speed of an individual Where v1,v2,…,vn are spot speeds of n vehicles
vehicle is defined as follows:
n
vs  n
1 1 1
ui 
dx 
1
( 
v1 v 2
 ...  )
vn
dt
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 21

Speed, Cont.
• Posted speed = Speed limit
• Operating speed = freeflow (spot speed)
– Is instantaneous speed of a vehicle at a specified
location
• Running speed = length of highway section ÷
running time
• Journey Speed
• Design speed = selected speed used to
determine geometric design features

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 22

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Speed, Cont.
Design Speeds for highway, (IRC)

• The maximum safe Classification Design Speed (in Kph)

speed on a highways Flat or

rolling
Hilly or
mountainou
depends on the country s country
following: NH or SH 80 48
– Type of highway MDR 64 40
ODR 48 32
– Type of road surface
VR 32 24
– Condition of road surface
– Type of curves Wliey has recommended the following
– Sight distance empirical formula for speed on curves

– Intensity of traffic and Sc 3  6356 R (e  0.2)

nature of traffic
– Type of country
Feb-13
Where Sc = critical speed in kph
R = Radius of curvature in meters
e = super elevation
Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 23

Time and Space Mean Speeds

• Time and Space Mean Speeds are related.
vt  vs  s2
• Time mean speed is always greater than vs
space mean speed.

Classification of Speeds in Km/h vs  vt 

 t2
Road vt
Arterial 80 t 2  variance of the time mean speed
Sub-arterial 60
s 2  variance of the space mean speed
Collector streets 50
Local streets 30
Mean Deviation 
 x
Suggested design speeds in urban area, India n
 2

 x    2

Variance- The arithmetic mean of the squared

n
 - Variance
2 deviations from the mean.
 - Standard deviation

2 
t
 v i  vt 
2

n
 2  [(50 - 41.67) 2  ( 40  41.67) 2  ( 35  41.67) 2 ] / 3
t
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 24
 2  37.58
t

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Density
• Density (k)- the number of vehicles
per unit length of roadway at a given
instant (vehicles/Km)
K 5280
spacing ( s )
(veh/mi)

q  k .v S= average spacing between vehicle in the lane, ft

q – Volume (Veh/hr)
V – Km/hr
Speed

v  0.68 * ( hs )
V= average speed, mi/h
s= spacing, ft
h= headway, sec

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 25

• Directed measurement
of density can be
obtained through aerial
photography, but more
commonly it is
calculated from the
above equation if speed
and rate of flow are
known.
Ex. A highway segment
with a rate of flow of
1350veh/h and average
travel speed of 45km/h
would have a density of
k=1350/45=30veh/km

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 26

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Ancillary Traffic Flow Characteristics

• Headway/Gap Both spacing and headway are

(seconds)- the time related to speed, flow rate
(volume) and density.
interval between two
consecutive vehicles
passing a given point
3600 3600
Volume( veh/hr)  
mean headway (sec) h
h= average headway in the lane, second

1000 x space mean speed (Km/hr) 1000 * vs

Volume (veh/hr)  
mean spacing (m) s
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 27

Examples
1- if the mean headway between vehicles is 6 seconds. What is the
volume of traffic? q=600vph

2- if the space mean speed of the traffic in Ex.1- is 80 Km/h. what

is the traffic density? K=7.5veh/km
3- an aerial photograph of a 0.4 Km section of road shows that
there are 10 vehicles on it. What is the density of traffic? 25veh./km

4- what is the traffic density on a freeway segment with a rate of

flow of 1,350 veh/hr and average travel speed of 45 km/hr? K=30veh.km

5- Traffic in a congested multilane highway lane is observed to

have an average spacing of 200ft and an average headway of
3.8s. Estimate the Rate of Flow, Density and Speed of traffic in
this lane.

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 28

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Example, Cont
6. At time of observation, there were seven vehicles counted on the
1000ft section of roadway lane. Calculate the density (k)? K=36.96veh/mi
7. An observer noted that a traffic stream on a freeway lane
displayed average vehicle headway of 2.5 seconds at a space
mean speed of 80 Km/h. it was also noted that 55% of the
vehicles were passenger cars (5 meters long), 40% were semi -
trailers ( 16.8 meters long) and 5% were articulated buses (18.3
meters Long). What is the density of this traffic stream? 18 vehicles/km
8. The time taken by five vehicles to traverse a 2Km section of the
Norodom Blvd were recorded by an observer. They were 80, 87,
73, 80 and 91 seconds respectively. What is the space-mean speed
of the vehicles? 88 Km/hr

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 29

Traffic Growth Rate

• The estimation of future
traffic is important for:
– Geometric design Design Year ADT  ( Z / 100  1) P * Y
– Pavement design, and
– Economic analysis.
– Trend analysis

where P  number of year (0,1,2,..., n)

Y  Present ADT (Current Traffic Count)

P  Number of years to Design Year (5Yrs,10Yr s or 20Yrs)

Z  average annula growth rate in decimal

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 30

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Example
• At the time of design in 2002, the average
daily traffic, ADT on RN11 was 420 vpd and
the average annual growth rate is 2%.
1. Calculate the 5 year design ADT? 464 vpd

2. Calculate the 10 year design ADT? 512 vpd

3. Calculate the 20 year design ADT? 624 vpd

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 31

Summary
• A number of basic parameters are used to
measure a traffic stream
– Speed and Volume
– Hourly, Daily and Seasonal Variations
• Introduced the basic relations used to describe
the characteristics of traffic stream
– Space and Time Mean Speeds
– Volume and Rate of Flow
– Density and Occupancy
– Spacing and Headway
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 32

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Speed-Density-Flow Relationship
• Because flow is the product of speed and
• Speed, Flow and Density are all density, the flow is equal to zero when one
related to each other. or both of these terms is zero. It is also
possible to deduce that the flow is
• Under uninterrupted flow
maximized at some critical combination of
conditions, speed, density and speed and density.
flow are given:
• Two common traffic conditions illustrate
these points. The first is the traffic jam,

q  k .v
where traffic densities are very high and
speeds are very low. This produces a very
low flow. The second condition occurs
when traffic densities are very low and
drivers can obtain free-flow speed. The
Where q= flow (vehicles/hr) extremely low density compensates for
higher speeds and the resulting flow is
V= speed (miles/hr, Km/hr)
very low.
K= density (vehicles/mile, vehicles/Km)

K * V - q Traffic Jam
Feb-13 K * V - q Free Flow Speed
33

Graphical Representations
Speed-Density Speed-Flow Flow-Density

V V q

K q K Level of Service A Level of Service D

The table shows the Speed, Flow and Density of

traffic under each LOS rating.

LOS Speed Range Flow Range Density Range

(mph) (veh./hour/lane) (veh./mile)

A Over 60 Under 700 Under 12

B 57-60 700-1100 12-20 Level of Service B Level of Service E
C 54-57 1100-1550 20-30

D 46-54 1550-1850 30-42

E 30-46 1850-2000 42-67
F Under 30 Unstable 67-maximum

Feb-13 34
Level of Service C Level of Service F

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Greenshield’s Model
Fig.1-1 Speed vs Density
• Greenshield was able to develop a A, free flow speed
model of uninterrupted traffic flow
that predicts and explains the trends
that are observed in real traffic flows. A/B, Jam density

Speed (v)
• Greenshield made the assumption
that, under uninterrupted flow
conditions, speed and density are
linearly related. This relationship is
expressed mathematically and Density (k)
graphically below

v  A  B*k q  (A  B *k)*k
A & B= constants determined from the field observation
q  A * k  Bk 2
V= speed (miles/hr, Km/hr)
K= Density (vehicles/mile, Vehicles/Km)

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 35

• As noted, you can determine q  (A  B *k)*k

the values of constants A
and B through field q  A * k  Bk 2
observations. This is done
by collecting velocity and This new relationship between flow and
density data in the field, density provides an avenue for finding
plotting the data, and then the density at which the flow is
using linear regression to fit maximized.
a line through data points.
• The constant A represents Fig.1-2 Flow vs Density
the free flow speed, while A2/4B
A/B represents the jam
density.
Flow (q)

A/2B

Density (k)

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 36

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Fig.1-3 Speed vs Flow

q  (A  B *k)*k
q  A * k  Bk 2

Speed (v)
dq / dk  A  2 * B * k  0
k  A/ 2* B
Therefore, at the density given
above, the flow will be maximized.
v  A  B * ( A /(2 * B ))
v  A/ 2
A/2
A2/4B
Flow (q)
This indicates that the maximum flow
occurs when traffic flowing at half of
free-flow speed (A). Substituting the
optimum speed and density into the
speed-density-flow relationship yields
the maximum flow as follow:-

q  ( A / 2) * ( A / 2 * B))
q  A2 /(4 * B )

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 37

Greenshield’s Conclusion
• The following can be derived from Gr.model
– When the density is zero, the flow is zero as 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 lines up end to end
(parking lot condition)
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.

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 38

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Example, Greenshield’s Model

1. Inspection of a freeway data set reveals a
free flow speed of 60 mph, a jam density
of 180 vehicles per mile per lane, and
observed maximum flow of 2000
vehicles per hour. Determine the linear
equation for velocity for these conditions
and determine the speed and density at
maximum flow conditions. How do the
theoretical and observed conditions
compare?
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 39

2. A study of freeway flow at a particular site has

resulted in a calibrated speed-density
relationship, as follows:

Vs= 57.5(1-0.008K)

From this relationship:

a. Find the free-flow speed and jam density.

b. Derive the equation describing flow versus
speed and flow versus density
c. Determine the capacity of the site
mathematically.
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 40

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Example 3

The Free-Flow Speed A 70 miles/hour 80?

The Jam Density A/B 175 veh./miles 180?

Q: Draw the Graph Relationship between:-

1- Density vs Speed?
2- Flow vs Speed?
3- Density vs Flow?

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 41

Name:
I.D No.

Homework 1: Application of Greenshield's Model

The free-flow speed A 75 miles/hour 80? miles/hour

The Jam density A/B 175 Vehi/mile 180? Vehi/mile

%of Jam Density,k Speed,v Flow,q

Density (A/B) k=%*(A/B) v=A-B*k q=k*v Calculation
0% 0 75 0
10% 17.5 67.5 1181.3 B=A/(A/B) 0.4286
20% 35 60 2100 Max flow
30% 52.5 52.5 2756.3 q=A^2/(4*B) 3281.3
40% 70 45 3150
50% 87.5 37.5 3281.3 M ax flow
60% 105 30 3150
70% 122.5 22.5 2756.3
80% 140 15 2100
90% 157.5 7.5 1181.3
100% 175 0 0

Flow vs Density
Speed vs Density

80 3500
70 3000
Speed (v)_

60 2500
Flow, q

50 2000
40
30 1500
20 1000
10 500
0 0
0 25 50 75 100 125 150 175 200 0 25 50 75 100 125 150 175 200
Density (k) Density, k

Speed vs Flow
80
70
Speed (v)

60
50
40
30
20
10
0

Feb-13 0
Traffic
500
Flow
1000
4Yr
1500
by CSP
2000 2500 3000 3500
42
Flow (q)

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Average Daily Traffic Annual Average Daily

Traffic (AADT)
n
DTi
ADT  
365
DTi
AADT  
i 1 n i 1 365
Where DT=daily count of traffic
n=number of days counted

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 43

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 44

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Traffic Characteristics
• Axle load
– A vehicle can have a number of axles.
– A standard truck has two axles, namely the front and the
rear.
– The weights of individual axles are called the axle load
which may be assumed as approximately half the total
weight of a standard truck. In practice the weights of the
rear and the front axles are not equal, they depend on the
position of the load the vehicle carries.
– Generally, for design purposes, it is the weight of the rear
axle of a vehicle which is taken into account.

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 45

• The axle load of various

vehicles are different. The
Fourth power damage formula
damages caused by them are
of different magnitudes.
• If a damage is caused by N1 4
N1 W 2 
number of repetitions for an  
axle weight of w1 and the N2 W1 
same extent of damage is
caused by N2 number of
repetitions by another axle This equation is used to convert the number
of repetitions of vehicles of various axle
load W2 then AASHO’s loads plying on road to an equivalent
experimental data gives the standard axle load repetitions (ESAL).
following equation

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TMhMkarxUcxaténTMgn;GkS½ePøA
The Effects of Axle Loads
Equivalency Factor F = [Actual Axle Load P(t) /Standard Axle Load (10t)]n

• This formula compares the damaging effect on the

road structure of any axle load, P with that of a
standard single axle load of 10 ton. An average of
n=4 .
• Example: An axle carrying twice the legal load (20t)
has 16 times the damaging effect of legal axle load.

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• The standard axle load in India is 8.16 tonnes and

14.968 tonnes for single axle load and tandem axle
respectively.
• Legal axle load is that maximum axle load, any value
beyond which is not permitted to move over the road.

Countries Legal single

axle load
Japan, Netherland and Sweden 10 t
UK 10.17 t
European community proposed limit 11.15 t
Italy 12 t
Belgium, France, Greece, Luxembourg 13 t

Standard axle load is that axle load based on which all the
calculations related to pavement damage have been standardized.

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Capacity and LOS Analysis

• Two categories of traffic flow were

examined
– Interrupted flow
– Uninterrupted flow
• Capacity and quality or LOS are
most useful and important to the
transportation engineers.
• Present procedures for determining
the capacity and LOS of
uninterrupted flow transportation
facilities:
– Freeway
– Multilane highways
– Two-lane highway
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Design Capacity of Rural Motorway

Type of Daily Design PHD
Carriageway Capacity, pcu/day Capacity Per Lane
PCU/hour
Dual 2 – lane 33,000 1,000
Dual 3 – lane 50,000 1,000
Dual 4 – lane 66,000 1,000

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• Capacity Under Ideal Conditions, the
possible capacity for uninterrupted
flow are as follows:
– For 2-lane two way = 2,800pcu/h
– For multi-lane (per lane) = 2,800pcu/h
• Highway Capacity defined as the
maximum number of vehicles per
hour
– Under ideal condition, one freeway
lane: 2,000 pcu/h
– Two-lane: 1,000 pcu/h in each
direction
• Traffic flow theory can be used in the
planning, design and operation of
highway system.
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP
• AADT is not adequate details for design – in most
cases, the DHV must be estimated from the
AADT
– DHV=k*AADT (k=7-12%)
– DHV=30HV but 30HV≠AADT
• Typical procedure for estimating volume for
design is
– Estimate design hourly volume
– Determine directional split
– Determine composition
• In order to determine how large the road
should be needed to determine not only
Demand but also Capacity.
– Demand given by DHV
– Capacity given by Design Hourly Service
Volume
– Capacity affected by highway and traffic
conditions
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2/22/2013
• Ideal conditions consist of the
following for 2-lane roads
– Design speed ≥100Km/h
– Lane width ≥ 3.65m
– Clear shoulders wider than or equal
to 1.83m
– No “Passing Zones” on the
highway
– All passenger cars in the traffic
stream
– A 50/50 directional split of traffic
– No impediments to through traffic
due to traffic control devices or
turning vehicles
– Level terrain
53
• Design Service Volume is
determined for highway design
by specifying a suitable LOS
(LOS A-F)
• Once the LOS is determined –
the design service volume is the
maximum flow rate for that
LOS.
• Demand, Capacity and Volume
– Demand : Volume not influenced
by highway capacity
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From Ideal Conditions to Real, Prevailing

Conditions
We use adjustment factors to take into account the effect
of prevailing conditions on capacity and level of
service. Typically it is like…

Free-Flow Speed:

FFS  FFSi  f LW  f LC  f N  f ID
Passenger Car Equivalent Flow Rate:

v p  v /( PHF  N  f HV  f p )

Feb-13 SFi=MSFiTraffic
*N*fFloww*f
4Yr *fCSP
HVby p 55

Determine Free Flow Speed Determine Flow Rate

• FFS Free Flow Speed • Vp 15 minutes passenger car
• BFFS Base FFS, 70mi/h (Urban), 75mi./h equivalent flow rate (pcphpl)
(Rural)
• fLW Adjustment for lane width (mi/h) • V Hourly Volume (Veh/h)
• fLC Adjustment for Right Shoulder lateral • PHF Peak Hour Factor
clearance (mi/h)
• N Number of lanes in one
• fN Adjustment of Number of Lanes (mi/h)
• fID Adjustment for Interchange density
direction
(mi/h) • fHV Heavy Vehicle Adjustment
Factor
• fp Driver population adjustment
factor
FFS  FFSi  f LW  f LC  f N  f ID
v p  v /( PHF  N  f HV  f p )

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There are three sections in a

freeway
•Basic Unit
•Weaving sections
•Ramp (0n/Off)
LOS CALCULATION •Freeway usually have 4, 6, 8
Input lane alignment
Geometric Data
Measured FFS or BFFS
Volume

BFFS Adjustment Volume Adjustment

•Lane width •PHF
•Number of lanes •Number of lanes
•Interchange density Measured FFS •Driver population
•Lateral clearance Input •Heavy vehicles

Compute FFS Compute Flow Rate

DEFINE SPEED-FLOW CURVE

Compute Density Using Flow Rate

and Speed

Determine Speed Using Speed-Flow

Curve
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Determine LOS

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Four Types of Analysis

Type Input Output
Operational I vp, FFS LOS

II vp, LOS, FFS S (Speed)

III FFS, LOS Vp (Service Volume = Vp * PHF)

Planning IV vp, LOS N (No. of lanes)

For planning analysis, you need to estimate the directional design

hourly volume (DDHV):
DDHV = AADT * K * D

besides all other potential prevailing conditions. Then,

Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP 59
V = DDHV/(No. of Lanes)

Problem 9-12: This is a case of Planning Analysis – Given vp and LOS,

find number of lanes needed

• Step 1: Compute heavy vehicle adjustment 1

factor f HV 
1  PT ( ET  1)  PR ( E R  1)

 Step 2: Assume Number of Lanes (Freeway >= 4 Lanes – 2 Lane each way
minimum) and compute 15-min peak passenger-car equivalent flow rate.
Hint 1: Design volume of a freeway is given for each direction.
Hint 2: Highest freeway lane capacity is about 2,300 pcphpl.
V
vp 
PHF  N  f HV  f p
 Step 3: Compute free flow speed given BFFS (70 mph in this case) and number
of lanes used in Step 2 and other data.
FFS  BFFSi  f LW  f LC  f N  f ID
 Step 4: Compute density using vp and FFS and determine LOS to see if
computed LOS meets the desired LOS. (Tab 9-33)
vp
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP
Repeat steps 2 to 4 till design LOS is met. D 60
FFS

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Definitions

Capacity Demand
Traffic Intensity

Volume
Congestion

Time
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31

• Factors affecting FFS
– Lane width
– Lateral clearance
– Number of Lanes
– Interchange Density
– Geometric Design
 Freeway LOS based on traffic density
• LOS Calculation
– Does not consider
• Special lanes reserved for a particular
type of vehicle (HOV, Truck,
Climbing etc)
• Segment near a toll plaza
• Posted speed limit
• ITS System
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP
• Basic Freeway Segment
– Segment of a freeway at least 1,500ft
(457.5m)
– Base Freeway Condition
• Lane width at least 12ft (3.65m)
• Right side shoulder lateral
clearance at least 6ft (1.83m)
• Median lateral clearance at least
2ft
• Passenger cars only in traffic
stream
• Interchange spacing not closer
than 2miles (3.2Km)
• Level terrain, with grade <2%
• Five or more lanes for 1 direction
(in urban area only)
• A driver population consisting of
principally regular users.
Feb-13 Traffic Flow 4Yr by CSP
2/22/2013
• Factors contributing to
LOS
– Lane width
– Lateral clearance
– Traffic composition
– Grade
– Speed
63
• Capacities of basic freeway segments
under base conditions at different FFS
– FFS=75mp =2,400pcphpl
– FFS=70mph =2,400pcphpl
– FFS=65mph =2,350pcphpl
– FFS=60mph =2,300pcphpl
– FFS=55mph =2,250pcphpl
• LOS a function of density,
Volume/Capacity Ratio, and/or FFS,
it varies from LOSA to F
– LOS A < 11 Density Range (pcphpl)
– LOS B >11 to 18
– LOS C > 18 to 26
– LOS D > 26 to 35
– LOS E > 35 to 45
– LOS F > 45
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