INTRODUCTION TO

TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING

TTE 3004
 Today’s Lecture
• Analysis Of Streets In Multimodal Context
(Chapter 28)
• Basic Freeway Segments And Multilane
Highways (Chapter 14)
• Weaving, Merging, And Diverging
Movements (Chapter 15)
 ANALYSIS OF STREETS IN MULTIMODAL CONTEXT

28.1 Arterial Planning Issues And Approaches

28.2 Multimodal Performance Assessment
28.2.1 Bicycle Level Of Service
28.2.2 Pedestrian Level Of Service
28.2.3 Bus Level Of Service
28.2.4 Automobile Level Of Service
28.2.5 Florida Quality/Level Of Service Handbook

Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
Vision zero is a strategy to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe
injuries, while increasing safe, healthy, equitable mobility for all.
https://visionzeronetwork.org
 COMPLETE STREETS

Source: https://bouldercolorado.gov/transportation/complete-streets
Source: http://apcompletestreets.org/
LEVEL OF SERVICE

Fig 6.18
Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 BASIC FREEWAY SEGMENTS AND MULTILANE HIGHWAYS

14.1 Facility Types

14.2 Basic Freeway And Multilane Highway Characteristics
14.3 Analysis Methodologies For Basic Freeway Sections And Multilane Highways
14.4 Sample Problems
14.5 Calibration Speed-flow-density Curves
14.6 Calibrating Passenger-car Equivalents
14.7 Calibrating The Driver Population Factor
14.8 Adjustment Factors To Free-flow Speed
14.9 Software

Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 FACILITY TYPES
are the only types of facilities providing pure . All entries and exits from freeways
are made using ramps designed to allow such movements to occur without interruption to the freeway traffic
stream. There are no at-grade intersections (either signalized or unsignalized), no driveway access, and no
parking permitted within the right-of-way. Full control of access is provided. Freeways are generally classified
by the total number of lanes provided in both directions (e.G., A six-lane freeway has three lanes in each
direction). Common categories are four-, six-, and eight-lane freeways, although some freeway actions in major
urban areas may have 10 or more lanes in specific segments.
facilities should be classified and analyzed as (arterials) if signal spacing is
less than . Uninterrupted flow can exist on multilane facilities where the signal spacing is more than
. Where signal spacing is between one and two miles, the existence of uninterrupted flow depends on
prevailing conditions. There are, unfortunately, no specific criteria to guide traffic engineers in making this
determination, which could easily vary over time. In the majority of cases, between one and two
miles do not result in the complete breakdown of platoon movements unless the signals are not coordinated. Thus
most of these cases are best analyzed as arterials.

Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 LEVEL OF SERVICE (LINKS)

Source: 2009 FDOT Quality/Level Of Service Handbook

Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 ANALYSIS METHODOLOGIES FOR BASIC FREEWAY SECTIONS
AND MULTILANE HIGHWAYS
The form of analysis is operational analysis. In
this form of analysis, all traffic, roadway, and control conditions are defined for an
existing or projected highway section, and the expected level of service and
operating parameters are determined.
analysis it is often useful to determine the
service flow rates and service volumes for the various levels of service under
prevailing conditions. may then be compared to estimates for
a speedy determination of expected level of service.
In design analysis, an volume is used
to determine the number of lanes needed to provide for a specified level of service.

Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 HEAVY-VEHICLE FACTOR
The principal adjustment to demand volume is the , which adjusts for the
presence of heavy vehicles in the traffic stream. A heavy vehicle is defined as any vehicle with more
than four tires touching the pavement during normal operation.
The heavy-vehicle adjustment factor is based on the concept of . A
passenger-car equivalent is the number of passenger cars displaced by one truck, bus, or rv in a
given traffic stream under prevailing conditions.
HCM 2000 specifies passenger-car equivalents for trucks and buses and rvs for extended sections of
roadway in general terrain categories and for specific grade sections of significant impact.
Any grade less than 3% that is longer than 0.50 miles and an; grade of 3% or steeper that is longer
than 0.25 miles must considered a specific grade. This is because a long grade may have a
significant impact on both heavy-vehicle operation and the characteristics of the entire traffic stream.

Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 DRIVER POPULATION FACTOR
The base procedures for and assume a driver population of
or drivers with the roadway and its characteristics. On some recreational
routes, the majority of drivers may not be familiar with the route. This can have a significant
impact on operations. This adjustment factor is not well defined and depends on local
conditions. In general, the factor ranges.
Between a value of (for commuter traffic streams) to as a lower limit for other
driver populations. Unless specific evidence for a lower value is available, a value of
. Where unfamiliar users dominate a route, field studies
comparing their characteristics to those of commuters are suggested to obtain a better
estimate of this factor. Where a future situation is being analyzed, and recreational users
dominate the driver population, a value of 0.85 is suggested because it represents a "worst-
case" scenario.
Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 CALIBRATION SPEED-FLOW-DENSITY CURVES
The analysis methodologies of the for basic freeway sections
and multilane highways rely on defined curves for base
conditions, and on a applied to
determine and the demand flow rate in equivalent
pce.
It is important to understand some of the issues involved in calibrating
these basic relationships, both as background knowledge and because
the allows traffic engineers to
and values where they are available.
Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 HEAVY-VEHICLE ADJUSTMENT FACTOR
The heavy-vehicle adjustment factor
is the in converting
a demand volume under prevailing
conditions to a flow rate in
equivalent passenger-car
equivalents under base conditions.
As noted, the adjustment is based
on calibrated passenger-car
equivalents for trucks and buses
and for RVs under various conditions
of terrain.
Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 WEAVING, MERGING, AND DIVERGING MOVEMENTS
15.1 Turbulence Areas On Freeways And Multilane Highways
15.2 Level-of-service Criteria
15.3 A Common Point: Converting Demand Volumes
15.4 Weaving Segments: Basic Characteristics And Variables
15.5 Computational Procedures For Weaving Area Analysis
15.6 Basic Characteristics Of Merge And Diverge Segment Analysis
15.7 Computational Procedures For Merge And Diverge Segments
15.8 Sample Problems In Weaving, Merging, And Diverging Analysis
15.9 Analysis Of Freeway Facilities

Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 TURBULENCE AREAS ON FREEWAYS AND MULTILANE HIGHWAYS
occurs when one movement must cross the path of another along a length of facility
without the aid of signals or other control devices, with the exception of guide and/or
warning signs. Such situations are created when a merge area is closely followed by a
diverge area.
occurs when two separate traffic streams
join to form a single stream. Merging can occur at
an on-ramp to a freeway or multilane highway or
when two significant facilities join to form one.
occurs when one traffic stream separates
to form two separate traffic streams. This occurs at
off-ramps from freeways and multilane highways,
but it can also occur then a major facility splits to
form two separate facilities.
Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 LEVEL OF SERVICE

Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 FLOWS IN A WEAVING AREA
In a typical weaving area,
may exist by definition, the two that cross
each other's path are called weaving flows;
those that do not are called nonweaving, or
outer, flows. Figure 15.3 illustrates.
Vehicles on leg a and on leg d
cross the path of vehicles entering on leg b and
exiting on leg c. These are the weaving flows.
Movements A-C and B-D do not have to cross the
path of any other movement, even though they
may share lanes, and they are referred to as
nonweaving, or outer, flows.
Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 FLOWS IN A WEAVING AREA
Although has a tremendous
impact on the number of lane changes that
must be made within the confines of the
weaving area, the is
a critical determinant of the intensity of
lane-changing within the section.

Because all of the required lane changes must take place

between the entry and exit gores of the weaving area, the
of the section
. If 1,000 lane changes must be made within the
weaving area. Then the intensity of those lane changes will
be half as high if the section length is 1,000 feet as
compared with 500 feet.
Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 BASIC CHARACTERISTICS OF MERGE AND DIVERGE SEGMENT
ANALYSIS
As illustrated in figure 15.2,
analysis procedures for merge and
diverge areas focus on the merge
or diverge influence area that
encompasses lanes 1 and 2
(shoulder and adjacent) freeway
lanes and the acceleration or
deceleration lane for a distance of
of a diverge
or of a
merge area.

Analysis procedures provide

algorithms for estimating the density
in these influence areas. Estimated
densities are compared to the
criteria of table 15.1 to establish
the LOS.

Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.
 SEGMENTING THE FREEWAY
The HCM 2000 contains a methodology for the analysis of
of freeway facilities, containing many basic,
weaving, merge, and/or diverge sections, which was updated
and expanded in HCM 2010. The methodology is reasonably
for cases in which (i.E., LOS
F) but is extremely in cases that encompass segment
failures.
The analysis of a freeway facility must begin by the
facility into component sections. Sections are fairly easily
established using the definitions of basic, weaving, merge,
and diverge areas as defined in chapter 14. weaving,
merge, and diverge areas are isolated as segments all other
sections, by definition, are basic freeway segments.
Source: “Traffic Engineering” by Roess, Prassas & McShane, 4th edition, Pearson.