Introduction to Traffic Engineering

Varun Singh

vsingh.ce@gmail.com
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Transportation Engineering
Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE)

Transportation engineering is the application of

technology and scientific principles to the planning,
functional design, operation, and management of
facilities for any mode of transportation in order to
provide for the safe, rapid, comfortable, convenient,
economical, and environmentally compatible
movement of people and goods.
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Traffic Engineering
Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE)

Traffic engineering is that phase of transportation

engineering which deals with the planning, geometric
design and traffic operations of roads, streets, and
highways, their networks, terminals, abutting lands,
and relationships with other modes of transportation.
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Course Syllabus
Assignments 10%
Which should be done by yourself and emailed at the
specified time. Assignment solutions would be online
after the due.
Mid-term 20%
Final 60%
TA 10%

Total 100 %
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_traffic-related_de
ath_rate

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_po 5
pulation
Figure 1.1 Public Highway Mileage and Annual Vehicle-Miles Traveled in the United States, 19202007
(Source: Highway Statistics 2007, Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation,
Washington DC, 2008, Table VMT 421.)

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Vehicles per 1000= 18 in india

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Course Description and Objectives

Introduction to fundamentals of urban traffic engineering,
including data collection, analysis, and design. Traffic
engineering studies, traffic control devices, capacity and level
of service analysis of freeways and urban streets.
The objective of this course is to introduce students to traffic
engineering fundamentals for highways.
By the end of this course, students should be able to
evaluate,

analyze, and design timing plans for signalized intersections.

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References
Traffic Engineering, Roger P. Roess, Elena S.
Prassas, William R. McShane, Pearson Education
International, 2004.
Traffic Engineering and Transport Planning,
L.R. Kadayali, Khanna Publication, 2007.
Class lecture notes
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Transportation Modes
Road
Rail
Air
Maritime
Pipeline
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Transportation Modes
Urban People Transportation Systems
x Automobile
x Taxi/For-Hire Vehicles
x Local Bus Transit
x Express Bus Transit
x Para-transit
x Light Rail
x Heavy Rail
x Ferry
Intercity People-Transportation Systems
Urban and Intercity Freight Transportation
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Transportation Modes
Urban People Transportation Systems
Intercity People-Transportation Systems
x Automobile
x Intercity Bus
x Railroad
x Air
x Water
Urban and Intercity Freight Transportation
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Transportation Modes
Urban People Transportation Systems
Intercity People-Transportation Systems
Urban and Intercity Freight Transportation
x Long-Haul Trucks
x Local Trucks
x Railroad
x Water
x Air Freight
x Pipelines
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Traffic Engineering Profession

Relationship with General Public
More than any other engineer.
Relationship with Elected Official
A wide range of officials
Professional Ethics
According to outcomes it produces great responsibility
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Safety: The Primary Objective

The principal goal of the traffic engineer remains the
provision of a safe system for highway traffic.
400 fatalities per day fatalities in India in year 2015.
Uttar Pradesh recorded the maximum number of road
deaths (17,666), followed by Tamil Nadu (15,642),
Maharashtra (13,212), Karnataka (10,856) and Rajasthan
(10,510) in year 2015
The objective of safe travel is always number one and
is never finished for the traffic engineer.
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Other Objectives of Traffic Engineer

Speed
Comfort
Convenience
Economy
Environmental compatibility
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Other Objectives of Traffic Engineer

x While speed of travel is much to be desired, it is limited by
transportation technology, human characteristics, and the
need to provide safety.
x Comfort and convenience are generic terms and mean
different things to different people. Comfort involves the
physical characteristics of vehicles and roadways, and is
influenced by our perception of safety.

x Convenience relates more to the ease with which trips

are made and the ability of transport systems to
accommodate all of our travel needs at appropriate
times.
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Other Objectives of Traffic Engineer

x Economy is also relative. There is little in modern transportation
systems that can be termed cheap. Highway and other
transportation systems involve massive construction,
maintenance, and operating expenditures, most of which are
provided through general and user taxes and fees. Nevertheless,
every engineer, regardless of discipline, is called upon to
provide the best possible systems for the money.
x
Harmony with the environment is a complex issue that has
become more important over time. All transportation systems
have some negative impacts on the environment. All produce air
and noise pollution in some forms, and all utilize valuable land
resources.
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Elements of Transportation Systems

Facilities
Vehicles
Control systems

Users
Environment
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Elements of Traffic Engineering

Traffic studies and characteristics
Performance evaluation
Facility design
Traffic control
Traffic operations
Transportation systems management
Integration of intelligent transportation system
technologies (ITS)
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Elements of Traffic Engineering

Traffic studies and characteristics
involve measuring and quantifying various aspect of
highway traffic. Studies focus on data collection and
analysis that is used to characterize traffic, including
(but not limited to) traffic volumes and demands,
speed and travel time, delay, accidents, origins and
destinations, modal use, and other variables.
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Elements of Traffic Engineering

Performance evaluation
is a means by which traffic engineers can rate the
operating characteristics of individual sections of
facilities and facilities as a whole in relative terms.
Such evaluation relies on measures of performance
quality and is often stated in terms of levels of
service.
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Elements of Traffic Engineering

Facility design
involves traffic engineers in the functional and
geometric design of highways and other traffic
facilities. Traffic engineers, per se, are not involved in
the structural design of highway facilities but should
have some appreciation for structural characteristics of
their facilities.
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Elements of Traffic Engineering

Traffic control
is a central function of traffic engineers and involves
the establishment of traffic regulations and their
communication to the driver through the use of traffic
control devices, such as signs, markings, and signals.
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Elements of Traffic Engineering

Traffic operations
involves measures that influence overall operation of
traffic facilities, such as one-way street systems, transit
operations, curb management, and surveillance and
network control systems.
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Elements of Traffic Engineering

Transportation systems management (TSM)
Involves virtually all aspects of traffic engineering in a
focus on optimizing system capacity and operations.
Specific aspects of TSM include high-occupancy
vehicle priority systems, car-pooling programs, pricing
strategies to manage demand, and similar functions.
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Elements of Traffic Engineering

Intelligent transportation systems (ITS)
refers to the application of modern
telecommunications technology to the operation and
control of transportation systems. Such systems
include automated highways, automated toll-collection
systems, vehicle-tracking systems, in-vehicle GPS
and mapping systems, automated enforcement of
traffic lights and speed laws, smart control devices,
and others.
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Transportation Demand
Transportation demand is directly related to land-use
patterns and to available transportation systems and
facilities.
Transportation planners and traffic engineers attempt to
provide capacity for observed or predicted travel demand by
building transportation systems. The improvement of
transportation systems, however, makes the adjacent and
nearby lands more accessible and, therefore, more attractive
for development. Thus, building new transportation facilities
leads to further increases in lan-duse development, which (in
turn) results in even higher transportation demands.
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Transportation Demand
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Mobility vs. Accessibility

Mobility refers to the ability to travel to many
different destinations, while accessibility refers to the
ability to gain entry to a particular site or area.
x Mobility gives travelers a wide range of choices as to where to go
to satisfy particular needs. Mobility allows shoppers to choose from
among many competing shopping centers and stores.
x Accessibility is a major factor in the value of land. When land can
be accessed by many travelers from many potential origins, it is
more desirable for development and, therefore, more valuable.
Thus, proximity of land to major highways and public
transportation facilities is a major factor determining its value.
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Mobility vs. Accessibility

In highway systems, mobility is provided by high-
type facilities, such as freeways, expressways, and
primary and secondary arterials. Accessibility is
generally provided by local street networks. Except
for limited-access facilities, which serve only through
vehicles (mobility), most other classes of highway
serve both functions to some degree. Access
A good transportation system must provide for both
mobility and accessibility and should be designed to
separate the functions to the extent possible to ensure
both safety and efficiency.
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People & Goods OR vehicles?

The most common unit used by the traffic engineer is
vehicles.
Highway systems are planned, designed, and
operated to move vehicles safely and efficiently from
place to place.
Yet the movement of vehicles is not the objective; the
goal is the movement of the people and goods that
occupy vehicles.
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People & Goods OR vehicles?

1 lane of freeway carries 2200 pcph
1 lane of a street arterial carries 800 pcph
Auto occupancy of 1.1 pass/vehicle
3 lane freeway may carry up to7260 pass/hour

1 bus lane handles 100 buses/hour

3 bus lanes may carry up to 3(50)(100)=15,000pass/hour
Light rail transit capacity = 20,000pass/hour
Heavy rail transit headway @ 2 minutes
HRT capacity can be 30(2,000) = 60,000pass/hour
 1.4 Elements of traffic
engineering
Traffic studies and characteristics
Performance evaluation
Facility design
Traffic control
Traffic operations
Transportation systems management
Integration of ITS technologies

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 1.2.1 The Nature of
Transportation Demand

This circular, self-reinforcing characteristics of traffic demand creates a

central dilemma: building additional transportation capacity invariably leads
to incrementally increased travel demands. (p.5, 1 st paragraph)

Intelligent transportation systems & Intermodal systems

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 1.2.2 Concept of Mobility and
Accessibility
Principal arterials
Mobility
Minor arterials

Major collectors

Minor collectors
Access
Local roads and streets

Mobility = the ability to travel to

many different destinations
Accessibility = the ability to gain
entry to a particular site or area

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1.2.4 Transportation Modes

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Intermodal system for freight
(North Salt Lake UP Transfer Yard)

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DELHI METRO
(DMRC)

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 Attention to intermodalism

Unimodal
Bimodal
Multimoda
Front of DB Station, Ulm, Germany l
Intermoda
l

Tram-bus transfer, Cologne, Germany 40

Intermodal transportation system in
our area
(SLC Intermodal Hub)

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Amenities of the Frontrunner

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 The NH System

79116 km (49,160 miles) 43

NHS

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 1.5 Modern Problems for the
TE
Urban congestion
Growth management
Reconstruction of existing highway
facilities maintenance of traffic is a
major issue
Security of transportation facilities since
6/11.

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 1.6 Standard References for
the Traffic Engineer

Uniform Vehicle Code (UVC) and Model

Traffic Ordinance
Manual of Uniform Traffic Control
Devices (MUTCD 2003, 2009) (on-line)
Highway Capacity Manual (HCM)
AASHTOs Green Book A Policy on
Geometric Design of Highways and
Streets
Traffic Engineering Handbook
Manual of Traffic Engineering Studies
(on-line)
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Trip Generation by ITE
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Traffic Engineering History

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Traffic Engineering
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TSM & TDM

TSM: How much new capacity can be added?

TDM: How much capacity can be allowed?
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Transportation System Management (TSM)

Facility Design
Add Lanes
Remove Bottlenecks (Bridges, Tunnel,)
Revise Geometrics to Increase Speed
Vehicle Improvement to Reduce Headways

Traffic Control
Ramp metering
Signal Coordination
Signal Phase Sequence
Left Turn Treatments
Parking Restrictions
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Transportation Demand Management

(TDM)
Reducing Demand
Telecommuting
Trip Chaining
Shorter Work Week
Residential Relocation
Alternative Land Use Pattern
Shifting Demand
Flexible Working Hours
Staggered Working Hours
Business Operating Hours
Repacking Demand
Car Pooling and Van Pooling
Transit