Two-Lane Highway

Capacity and
LOS Analysis

CE 122
Traffic and Highway Engineering
 Two-lane Highway Characteristics
 One travel lane in each direction,
and typically undivided
 Used for lower traffic volume
situations
 Generally have free-flow speeds
ranging between 70 and 105
km/hr
 Have wide-ranging design
standards
 May have occasional traffic signals
or even stop-control
 In order to pass a vehicle, the
opposing lane must be used
(except for where passing lanes
are provided)
LOS Considerations
 Unlike the procedures for freeways and
multilane highways, both directions must
be considered in the level of service
analysis, even if only interested in one
direction
 Traffic in the opposing direction influences the
passing opportunities for vehicles in the direction
of interest
 Terrain can have a more significant
effect due to restrictions on passing-sight
distance
Service Measure(s)
 The service measure or measures is dictated
by the functional classification of the
two-lane highway segment.

There are three classes defined for two-

lane highways by the HCM.
 Classifications
 Class I: motorists expect to travel at high speeds, as well as
avoid extended following of other vehicles.
 typically include inter-city routes, primary arterials connecting
major traffic generators, daily commuter routes, and primary links in
state or national highway networks
 Class II: two-lane highways on which motorists do not
necessarily expect to travel at high speeds
 Shorter routes and routes that pass through rugged terrain,
for which travel speeds will generally be lower than for Class I
highways, are typically assigned to Class II. In these situations,
motorists primarily want to avoid extended following of other
vehicles.
 Classifications
 Class III: motorists do not expect frequent passing
opportunities, or to travel at high speeds. Scenic routes,
recreational routes, or routes that pass through
moderately developed areas (small towns) are typically
considered Class III routes.
 generally have lower posted speed limits, and in these situations,
motorists usually do not mind following other vehicles or traveling at
slower speeds, as long as they are able to travel at a speed close to
the speed limit
LOS Determination Procedure
1. Establish Base Conditions and
Capacity
2. Estimate or Measure Free-Flow
Speed
3. Calculate Analysis Flow Rate
4. Calculate Service Measure(s) and
Determine LOS
1. Base Conditions
 Minimum lane widths of 3.6 m
 Minimum shoulder widths of 1.8 m
 0% no-passing zones
 Traffic stream consisting of passenger cars only
 No direct access points along the roadway
 No impediments to through traffic due to traffic
control or turning vehicles
 Level terrain, with grades no greater than 2%
Capacity
 Capacity for both directions combined
is 3200 pc/h
 Capacity for a single direction is 1700
pc/h
 2. Measuring Free-Flow Speed
 Free-flow speed is the mean speed of all vehicles
measured under flow rates up to 200 pc/h (2-
way)
 If speeds are measured under a flow rate > 200,
use following adjustment equation:
FFS  SFM  0.0125 V f f HV   Eq. 6.9

Where:
FFS = estimated free-flow speed in km/h,
SFM = mean speed of traffic measured in the field in km/h,
Vf = observed flow rate, in veh/h, for the period when field data were obtained, and
fHV = heavy-vehicle adjustment factor as determined by Eq. 6.5.
 Estimating Free-Flow Speed

FFS = BFFS – fLS – fA Eq. 6.10

Where:
FFS = free-flow speed (km/h),
BFFS = estimated free-flow speed for base conditions,
fLS = adjustment for lane and shoulder width from Table 6.14 (km/h), and
fA = adjustment for access-point frequency from Table 6.13 (km/h).
Lane Width and
Shoulder Width

Table 6.14
 Access Frequency

Table 6.13

Same as for multilane highways

3. Analysis Flow Rate
1. Adjust for PHF
2. Adjust for grade
3. Adjust for vehicle mix

V
vp  Eq. 6.11
PHF  f G  f HV

Where:
vp = 15-min passenger-car equivalent flow rate (pc/h),
V = hourly volume (veh/h),
PHF = peak-hour factor,
fG = grade adjustment factor, and
fHV = heavy-vehicle adjustment factor.
 Grade Adjustment
 The grade adjustment factor accounts for the effect
of terrain on the traffic flow.

Table 6.15
PCEs for Extended General
Terrain Segments
 PCE values can be used for general
terrain segments, just as for freeways
and multilane highways.
 However, PCE values are different, and
only given for level and rolling terrain
classifications. Specific grade PCE
values must be used for mountainous
terrain.
 PCEs for Extended General
Terrain Segments

Table
6.16
Notes
 PCE values for specific grades not covered in
this book. Refer to the HCM.
 fHV and PHF calculated with same equations
as for freeways and multilane highways.
Calculate Service Measure(s)
 If the highway is Class I, both ATS and
PTSF must be calculated.
 If the highway is Class II, only PTSF
needs to be calculated.
 If the highway is Class III, only ATS
needs to be calculated.
 Average Travel Speed
ATSd  FFS  0.0125  vd  vo   f np Eq. 6.12

Where:
ATSd = average travel speed in the analysis direction in km/h,
FFS = free-flow speed in km/h, as measured in the field and possibly adjusted
by Eq. 6.9 or estimated from Eq. 6.10,
vd = analysis flow rate in analysis direction in pc/h, as calculated from Eq.
6.11,
vo = analysis flow rate in opposing direction in pc/h, as calculated from Eq.
6.11, and
fnp = adjustment factor for the percentage of no-passing zones, which is
determined from Table 6.17.
 Adjustment for effect of
no-passing zones on ATS

Table
6.17
excerpt
 Percent Time-Spent-Following
 vd 
PTSFd  BPTSFd  f np   Eq. 6.13
 vd  vo 
Where:
PTSF = percent time-spent-following in the analysis direction,
BPTSF = base percent time-spent-following in the analysis direction, and
fnp = adjustment factor for the percentage of no-passing zones (from Table 6.18).

BPTSFd  100 1  exp  avdb   Eq. 6.14

Where a and b are constants determined from Table 6.19.

 Adjustment for effect of
no-passing zones on PTSF

Table
6.18
excerpt
 PTSF Coefficients for use in Eq. 6.14

Table
6.19
Percent Free-Flow Speed

ATSd
PFFSd  Eq. 6.15
FFS
4. Determine LOS
Table 6.20