KWAME NKRUMAH UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

2023 ACADEMIC YEAR

FIRST SEMESTER

CE 367 TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING

TRAFFIC ENGINEERING STUDIES

DR. KENNETH A. TUTU

 Traffic Engineering Studies
• They provide data to characterize the condition, operation and safety performance of
transportation facilities. Problems and their locations are defined.
• Formats of traffic engineering studies
o Field data collection
o Secondary data collection – extracting information from existing systems
o Modeling transportation system in a traffic simulation tool
• Traffic engineering studies planning
o What is the purpose of the study?
o What data analysis method will be used?
o What are the data requirements for the selected analysis method?
o Are there adequate and high-quality historical data available?
o What are the available resources (time, money, personnel, equipment)?
o If several field study techniques are available, which will be cost-effective?
 Manual data collection
 Autonomous data collection
o What are contingency plans for uncertainties (e.g., inclement weather, equipment
malfunction, sick enumerators)?

Preparation for Field Data Collection

• Good preparation will increase data collection efficiency and effectiveness
• Train data enumerators in the study techniques and equipment.
• Notify authorities (e.g., police, local government agencies, schools), if necessary

Field Data Collection

• Visit site or be available by phone to answer questions during the study
• Monitor enumerators and equipment to ensure quality data
• Review data after each day’s study to check compromised data quality
• Enumerators must arrive at site early to assess conditions and set equipment
• Note unusual events that could affect data collection (e.g., crashes, weather events,
road closures, police/fire activity, civil unrest, etc.)
• Note deviations from accepted data collection procedures
• Safety should be the top priority
o Stay as far from the roadway as possible and watch out for errant vehicles
o Wear safety equipment, if necessary
o Distract drivers as little as possible
o Install traffic control devices, if necessary

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 Traffic Volume Studies
• They measure the volume of vehicles, bicycles or pedestrians that pass a point on a
facility during a specified period.
• Counting duration:
o Depends on the intended use of the data and available data collection methods
o Must be representative of the time of day, day of week or month of the year that is
of interest
o Avoid special events and adverse weather unless the purpose is to study them
o Typical manual count periods:
 Morning, afternoon and evening peak periods (3 hours each)
 Daytime (12 hours)
 Full day (24 hours)
o Count intervals are typically 15 minutes (e.g., 7:00–7:15, 7:15–7:30, etc.)
• Traffic volume data can either be point counts or area counts.
• Point Counts
o Counts at intersections or mid-block location (between two intersections)
o At cross intersections, each approach has three possible movements: Left/U-turn,
Through and Right
o At T-intersections, each approach has two possible movements: Left and Right.
o Roundabouts may require license plate technique for turning movement counts
• Area Counts:
o Collection of traffic data over a large area of transportation network
o Area counts can be cordon counts, screen line counts, control counts and coverage
counts.

o Cordon Counts
 An area of the network (e.g., CBD) is demarcated with an imaginary closed
boundary. The area within the boundary is called the cordon area.
 Vehicles/pedestrians at all points where roads cross cordon line are counted
 Vehicle type, direction of travel and occupancy are recorded
 Cordon counts show amount of traffic entering or leaving study area and
enables estimation of vehicle and person accumulations within the area.

 Cordon counts may be used for:

 Estimating vehicle miles of travel
 Tracking volume trends
 Planning for parking facilities
 As part of an origin-destination (O-D) survey
o Screen Line Counts
 Study area is divided into sections by running imaginary lines (screen lines)
across it. Screen lines can be natural or man-made (e.g., rivers, railroad).
 If possible, screen lines must not be crossed more than once by the same street

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  Traffic counts are taken at each point where a road crosses the screen line.
 Screen line counts can be used to:
 Check and adjust O-D studies results
 Validate traffic distribution results of a transportation planning study
 Detect trends in land use, commercial activity or travel patterns
o Permanent Counts and Control Counts
 Continuous counts are performed at permanent count stations for monitoring
traffic characteristics and trends in an area-wide traffic counting program.
 Control count stations are located to provide data to supplement data from
permanent count stations
o Coverage Counts
 They are used to estimate ADT using expansion factors from control counts.

Non-Motorized Traffic (NMT) Volume

• Pedestrian and bicycle volume data are used for:
o Traffic signal and crosswalk warrant studies
o Capacity analysis
o Collision studies
o Site impact analysis
o Planning applications.

• NMT volume count (manual observations)

o Count by age group and gender
o Type of behavior (e.g., signal compliance, jaywalking)
o Biking on roadway or sidewalk

• NMT volume count (automated technologies)

o Location-tracking mobile phones
o Automatic volume-data collection equipment
 Sensors detect presence of pedestrians or bicycles
 Data recorder
o Less labor cost and extended counting periods, but classification is difficult.

Manual Data Collection Methods

• Vehicles or subjects (pedestrian, bicycle) are tallied either during field observations
or from video recordings as it proceeds through the intersection or point of interest.
• Manual counts typically minimize equipment cost and simple to implement, but they
become inefficient as the duration of the count or traffic volume increases
• Electronic count boards (ECBs) are hand-held computers with different buttons
allocated to different movements at an intersection.

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Automatic Data Collection Methods
• They provide cost-effective means of collecting large data volume
• The techniques can be on-road or roadside technology.
• For both technologies, sensors detect presence of vehicles/pedestrians and a recorder
saves the data. Some equipment can transmit data to a central facility for processing.
• On-road technology includes pneumatic tubes, piezoelectric strips and various forms
of magnetic inductance technology.
o They are mounted directly on the travel lanes or are embedded in the pavement
o Limited in their ability to count pedestrians and bicycles
• Roadside technology utilize video, radar, infrared or laser technology. Roadside
technology can be combined with in-vehicle technology (e.g., transponders, wireless
communication devices) that can communicate with roadside readers.

Classification of Volume Counts

• Volume count typically records the number of each type of vehicle (classified count).
• It is important to identify the volume of each vehicle type to be able to assess the
impacts of different vehicle types on traffic flow.

Ghana Highway Authority (GHA) Vehicle Classification

(GHA Pavement Design Manual, 1998)

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 GHA Vehicle Classification
Class Class Name Description
1 Cars
2 Pick-up/Vans/Jeep
3 Mammy Wagon
4 Small Buses Carry 19 passengers (maximum)
5 Medium Buses Carry 20 to 33 passengers
Large Buses Carry 34 or more passengers
6 Light Trucks • 2-axle trucks with single rear wheels OR
• 2-axle trucks less than 10 tons with twin rear
7 Medium Trucks 2-axle trucks with twin rear wheels
3-axle trucks
8 Heavy Trucks 4-axle trucks (not in classification)

9 Semi-trailers Semi-trailers with any configuration of 3 axles

10 Semi-trailers Semi-trailers with any configuration of 4 axles
11 Semi-trailers Semi-trailers with any configuration of 5 axles
12 Extra Large Semi-trailers with any configuration of 6 axles,
tractors, heavy agricultural or constructional

Volume Count Duration

• Sub-hour: 15–minute counts are common; they can also be 5-minute counts.
• Hourly: Hourly volumes indicate how volumes vary by time of day; they help
identify the peak periods of flow that may pose challenges.
o Hourly counts are often determined by summing the counts of consecutive sub-
hour intervals (typically, four consecutive 15-minute counts).
o Hourly volumes can start at any time (e.g., 7:15–8:15; 8:15–9:15). Hourly
volumes indicate demand over a one-hour period by direction.
o Peak hour is the duration that records the highest hourly volume
o The peak hour volume is that hourly volume that occurs during the peak hour or
“rush hour”. It is the single hour of day that has the highest hourly volume.
o If a facility can accommodate the peak hour traffic, it can accommodate traffic
from other normal periods. It is not always practical to design for the peak hour
volume.

• Daily Traffic Volume

o Daily volumes are a combination of volumes in both travel directions
o Average annual daily traffic (AADT) is the total 24-hour traffic volume (in both
travel directions) that passes a point on a roadway in one year divided by 365 days
 AADT describes the amount of traffic using a facility on any typical day and
accounts for seasonal, monthly and daily variations in traffic flow.
 AADT is used in several traffic analyses, including:
 Estimation of road user revenues (e.g., road tolls)
 Establishment of traffic volume trends
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  Pavement structural design
 Economic analysis of highway construction projects
 Computation of crash analysis

o Average daily traffic (ADT) is the total 24-hour traffic volume (in both travel
directions) that passes a point on a roadway in a period greater than one day but
less than 365 divided by number of days in that period.
 ADT is collected for a period less than a year and can be converted to AADT
by applying adjustment factors.

• Weekday, Weekend and Seasonal Volumes: Daily volumes may be counted to

represent the traffic on a typical weekday, weekend, or season of the year. Examples:
o Average weekday traffic: Total traffic volume for an average weekday
o Annual average weekday traffic: Annual daily average for traffic on Monday
through Friday.
o Average weekend daily traffic: Total traffic volume for an average weekend day
(Saturday or Sunday)
o Annual average weekend traffic: Annual daily average for traffic on Saturday and
Sunday.
o Seasonal average daily traffic: Average daily traffic volume computed for the
season.

Traffic Volume Variation

• Traffic volume varies by location, time of day, day of week, month of year & season
• A single volume count conducted at a given location should not be assumed to
represent the traffic volume at that location throughout the day, week or year.

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 Traffic Flow Variation Within Peak Hour
• Within the peak hour, traffic flow may not be uniform. The peak 15-minute flow
within the peak hour is often for analysis.
• How consistent is traffic flow within the peak hour? Peak Hour Factor (PHF)
characterizes variations in traffic flow within the peak hour. It indicates the
consistency of the 15-minute flow rates within the peak hour.
• PHF is used to evaluate traffic flow conditions for capacity and LOS analysis.
• PHF is the ratio of the peak hour volume to the maximum 15-minute flow rate.

Peak Hour Volume V

PHF = =
Peak 15– Minute Flow Rate 4 ∗ V15

Where:
PHF = Peak hour factor
V = Peak hour volume, veh/hr
V15 = Maximum 15-minute volume measured during peak hour

• Theoretically, PHF ranges between 0.25 and 1.00.

o PHF of 1.00 means all four of the 15-minute volumes within the peak hour are the
same. That is, traffic flow is uniform throughout the peak hour. The smaller the
PHF, the more non-uniform the traffic flow within the peak hour.
o PHF is 0.25 if the peak hour volume occurs in one of the four 15-minute intervals.

• If a roadway operates at capacity through the peak hour, the PHF is often close to 1.0
• Congested roadways have larger PHFs than uncongested (unsaturated) facilities.
• Urban facilities tend to have higher PHFs (typically 0.90–0.95) than rural facilities.

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Peak Hour Factor Calculation Examples & Exercises
Example 1: Calculate the PHF of a roadway if the hourly volume is 3,500 veh/hr and the
peak 15-minute volume during that hour is 900 veh/15-min.

V 3500
PHF = = = 0.972
4 ∗ V15 4 ∗ 900

Example 2: Calculate the hourly volume for a facility if the PHF is 0.97 and the peak
15-minute flow rate is 900 veh/15-min.

V
PHF =
4 ∗ V15

V = PHF (4 ∗ V15 ) = 0.972(4 ∗ 900) = 3,500 veh/hr

Example 3: What is the PHF for this peak hour?

Period (AM) Vehicle Volume Calculation
7:00–7:15 200
V
PHF =
7:15–7:30 300 4 ∗ V15
7:30–7:45 500
1600
PHF = = 0.67
7:45–8:00 600 4 ∗ 600
Peak hour volume 1600

Example 4: What is the PHF for this peak hour?

Period (PM) Vehicle Volume Calculation
8:00–8:15 200 V
PHF =
8:15–8:30 200 4 ∗ V15
8:30–8:45 200
800
PHF = = 1.00
8:45–9:00 200 4 ∗ 200
Peak hour volume 800

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Exercise: Calculate the missing values.
Hourly Flow Rate Peak 15-min Vol.
Roadway PHF
(veh/hr) (veh/15-min)
A 4,295 1,095 ?
B 5,394 1,450 ?
C 6,840 ? 0.97
D 5,375 ? 0.94
E ? 867 0.91
F ? 927 0.89

Conversion of ADT to AADT

• It may not be cost-effective to count traffic throughout the year to obtain AADT.
Traffic can be counted over a few days and adjustment factors applied to convert the
ADT to AADT, using the formula:

AADT = V24ij ∗ DFi ∗ MFj

Where:
AADT = Annual average daily traffic
V24ij = 24-hour volume for day i in month j
DFi = Daily adjustment factor for day i
MFj = Monthly adjustment factor for month j

Examples of daily and monthly variation factors for Georgia Department of

Transportation (DOT) are provided below. These are presented as examples only and are
not applicable in Ghana. Sundays typically have lowest traffic volume, so this day has
the highest adjustment factor. January has the lowest monthly traffic volume, so it has
the highest adjustment factor.

Example Daily Adjustment Factors (Georgia DOT, 2013)

Urban Rural Urban Major Rural Major
Day
Freeway Freeway Arterial Arterial
Sunday 1.23 0.95 1.46 1.21
Monday 0.99 1.08 0.98 1.02
Tuesday 0.98 1.14 0.94 1.01
Wednesday 0.96 1.10 0.94 1.00
Thursday 0.93 0.99 0.92 0.95
Friday 0.90 0.82 0.86 0.85
Saturday 1.06 0.99 1.10 1.03
AADT
Daily Adjustment Factor = (see alterative approach below)
ADT

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 Typical Monthly Adjustment Factors (Georgia DOT, 2013)
Urban Urban Major Rural Major
Month Rural Freeway
Freeway Arterial Arterial
January 1.07 1.19 1.05 1.10
February 1.02 1.09 0.98 1.04
March 0.99 0.98 0.97 0.99
April 0.99 0.95 0.98 0.99
May 0.99 0.97 0.99 0.98
June 0.98 0.90 1.00 0.96
July 0.98 0.89 1.03 0.97
August 0.99 1.00 1.00 1.00
September 1.00 1.05 1.00 1.01
October 1.00 1.01 1.02 0.95
November 1.01 1.00 1.00 1.00
December 1.01 1.04 1.00 1.06
AADT
Monthly Adjustment Factor =
Monthly ADT

Determination of Adjustment Factors (or Expansion Factors)

Hourly, daily and monthly adjustment (expansion) factors can be determined using data
obtained at continuous count stations.

Hourly Expansion Factors (HEFs)

• HEFs are used to expand volume counts less than 24 hours to 24-hour volume by
multiplying the hourly volume for each hour during the count period by the HEF for
that hour and finding the mean of these products.
• HEFs are calculated by using the equation:

Volume for 24 − hour period

HEF =
Volume for particular hour

Daily Expansion Factors (DEFs)

• DEFs are used to determine weekly volumes from counts of 24-hour duration by
multiplying the 24-hour volume by the DEF.
• DEFs are calculated by using the equation:

Average daily volume for week

DEF =
Average volume for particular day

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Monthly Expansion Factors (MEFs)
• AADT for a given year can be obtained from the ADT for a given month by
multiplying this volume by the MEF.
• MEFs are calculated by using the equation:

AADT
MEF =
ADT for particular month

SPOT SPEED STUDIES

• Speed is the rate of movement of a vehicle. It is a measure of traffic performance
used in operations, design and safety analysis.
• Highway users relate speed to economics, safety, time, comfort and convenience.
• Spot speed study records vehicle speeds at a specified location under prevailing
traffic and environmental conditions.
• The speed characteristics are valid for the traffic and environmental conditions that
existed at the time of the study and for roadway segments that have similar traffic and
geometric characteristics like the study location.
• Spot speed data uses include:
o Establishing traffic operation and control parameters, such as speed limits and
passing restriction. The 85th percentile speed is often used as the speed limit.
o Evaluating effectiveness of TCDs and speed enforcement programs
o Determining adequacy of roadway geometric design features (e.g. horizontal
curve radii and lengths of vertical curves)
o Highway capacity analysis
o Assessing roadway safety concerns
o Monitoring speed trends

• Drivers must be unaware such a study is underway. Hide equipment and enumerators.
• Spot speed data collection approaches:
o Individual vehicle selection
o All-vehicle sampling

Individual Vehicle Selection

• A subset of vehicles in the traffic stream is sampled for manual speed measurement
• The purpose and scope of the study determine the location, time of day and day of
week and desired conditions for collecting the speed data.
o Measure speed upstream to an intersection approach just before the point traffic
begins to decelerate for a possible stop at the intersection if approach speeds to an
intersection are of interest.
o Measure speed during dark hours, if it is nighttime collision study
o Measure speed when it is raining, if wet pavement is a factor of interest
o Measure speed during off-peak hours, if free-flow speeds are needed.

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• Example applications are measuring effectiveness of a traffic control device, spot-
checking the effect of speed enforcement, or establishing locations for traffic signs.
• Radar or laser guns are commonly used for direct measurement of individual
vehicle speeds. They can be hand-held, vehicle-mounted, or trip-mounted.
o Radar devices transmit a continuous spectrum of waves that reflect off objects
o Laser beam is typically not continuous; it is triggered by the enumerator after
focusing on a vehicle.
• Define the study population and randomly select vehicles from that population
o Examples: free-flow vehicles, trucks, platoon leaders, all vehicles, etc.
o Adopt a selection strategy to provide a random sample of that population (e.g.,
select every third, fifth, tenth vehicle)
• In using radar/laser speed measuring devices:
o Keep a small angle of incidence between radar/laser beam and target vehicle’s
direction of travel (less than 15 degrees)
o Conceal device and operators to reduce driver distraction (safety concern) and
thus reacting (data bias).
o Measure speeds from vehicles moving towards or away from observer
o Follow device manufacturer’s instructions to calibrate prior to start of study
o Sketch layout of site showing number of lanes and device position
o Record start time, end time, downtime, and prevailing conditions
• Study duration should be such that the minimum number of vehicle speeds required
for statistical analysis is recorded.
• Use the following equation to calculate the number of speeds to be measured, when
mean speed is the statistic of interest.

Z 2
N = �S ∗ �
E

Where:
N = Minimum number of measured speeds
S = Sample standard deviation, km/h
Z = Number of standard deviations corresponding to a desired confidence level
= 1.96 for 95%; 2.055 for 98%; 2.58 for 99% confidence
E = Permitted error in the average speed estimate, km/h
= Typical permitted errors: ±1.6 to ±8.0km/h

Notes:
• Estimate S from previous speed studies under similar conditions or consider
suggestions in table below.
• The confidence level expressed by Z is the probability the difference between the
calculated mean speed from the sample and true average speed at the study location is
less than the permitted error. The Z values for selected confidence levels are valid for
sample sizes greater than 100 measurements
• E reflects the precision required in estimating the mean speed.

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 Standard Deviation of Spot Speeds for Sample Size Determination
(Box & Oppenlander, 1976)
Traffic Area Roadway Standard Deviation (km/h)
Two-lane 8.5
Rural
Four-lane 6.8
Two-lane 8.5
Intermediate
Four-lane 8.5
Two-lane 7.7
Urban
Four-lane 7.9

All-Vehicle Sampling Method

• Measure spot speeds of all vehicles passing a point during a period using automatic
data collection.
• Applications include monitoring speed trends, assessing highway safety or
establishing speed limits.
• Study location, time, roadway, traffic and weather conditions under which to conduct
spot speed study all depend on the objective and scope of the study.
• Automatic data collection equipment are utilized. Example: sensors placed in the
travel lanes that serve as input devices for recorders located at the site.
• Commonly-used devices for measuring speed are on-road sensors: pneumatic tubes,
induction loops and point loops. Two measurement units are placed a short distance
apart to form a speed trap that measures the time it takes the vehicle to travel from
one detector to the next.
• Sample size requirements may be estimated as described for individual-vehicle
selection method.

Speed Characteristics
• Average Speed (Time Mean Speed): sum of all spot speeds divided by the number of
recorded speeds. It is computed using the equation below:

∑ ui
u� =
N
Where:
u� = Average speed (time mean speed)
ui = Measured spot speed
N = Number of measured speeds

Speed data may be presented in classes, where each class consists of a range of speeds.
The average speed formula for a range of speed is calculated as follows.

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 ∑ fi u i
u� =
∑ fi
Where:
u� = Average speed (time mean speed)
fi = Number of observations (frequency) for speed class i
ui = Mid-value of speed class i

• Median Speed: speed value at the middle of spot speeds arranged in an ascending
order. Fifty percent of the speeds will be greater than the median speed and 50% will
be less.
• Modal Speed: The most frequently occurring speed value in a sample of spot speeds
• i-th Percentile Spot Speed: Spot speed value below which i percent of the vehicles
travel. Example, the 85th percentile spot speed is the speed at or below which 85% of
the vehicles travel and above which 15% of the vehicles travel.
• Pace: The range of speed (typically 10-km/h) that has the highest frequency. For
instance, if a speed dataset includes speed between 50 and 80 km/h, the speed
intervals at range of 10 km/h will be 50 to 60 km/h, 60 to 70 km/h and 70 to 80 km/h.
The pace is 60 to 70 km/h if this range has the highest number of observations.
• Standard Deviation of Speed: a measure of the spread of the individual speeds from
the mean speed. It is estimated as follows:

∑(ui − u� )2
S= �
N−1

Where:
S = Standard deviation
u� = Average speed
ui = Measured spot speed
N = Number of observations
For speed data shown in classes, use the equation below to compute standard deviation

∑ fi (ui − u� )2
S= �
N−1

Where:
S = Standard deviation
fi = Number of observations (frequency) for speed class i
ui = Mid-value of speed class i
u� = Average speed
N = Number of observations
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 Intersection Studies
• Intersection studies include
o Turning movement volume counts
o Delay and queue length
o Saturation flow and lost time
o Intersection sight distance
o Non-motorized traffic studies (walking speed, and behavior studies)

• Uses of intersection studies

o Traffic control devices warrant determination
o Intersection capacity analysis
o Traffic signal timing design
o Site development impacts
o Safety improvement
o Driveway locations
o Intersection geometric design

Intersection Delay Studies

• They measure the quality of traffic flow and evaluate the need for traffic signals
• Components of intersection delay:
o Time-in-queue delay: difference between the time a vehicle joins the rear of a
queue and the time the vehicle clears the intersection
o Control delay: results when a control signal causes a lane group to reduce speed
or to stop; it is measured by comparison with the uncontrolled condition.
 It comprises the time-in-queue delay plus time losses due to deceleration from
and acceleration to free-flow speed.
o Geometric delay: occurs when geometric features cause vehicles to reduce speed
in negotiating the intersection
o Travel-time delay: difference between the time a vehicle passes a point
downstream of the intersection, when it has regained normal speed, and the time
when it would have passed that point had it been able to continue through the
intersection at its approach speed. It includes control and geometric delay.

• Control delay is often used because it is the easiest to measure and the Highway
Capacity Manual (HCM) defines intersection LOS based on control delay.
• Delay data can be collected manually or electronically.
o Use ECB, laptop or tablet to collect delay data, using built-in software.
o Video recordings can be used but long queues are difficult to capture; lightning
may be problematic; data reduction is time-consuming.
• Delay measurements during peak periods are most useful. Select appropriate
weekday or weekend for consistent traffic patterns with the highest volumes.
• Avoid delay studies during weather that affects normal volumes or driving behavior.

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 Queue Length
• Data can be used to determine length of storage lanes or used to measure traffic
signal efficiency.
• Count the number of vehicles in a standing or slowly moving queue within
designated time intervals, either in the field or from photographs or videos.
• At signalized intersections, record counts at the start of the green interval and the end
of the yellow interval.
• Counts at unsignalized intersections are usually made at equal intervals of 30 or 60
seconds

Saturation Flow
• Saturation flow rates are used to time signals and estimate intersection capacity.
• Saturation flow rate is defined as the number of vehicles that can pass a given point
on a highway in a period of time with no interruptions.
• Ideal saturation flow rate: the number of vehicles in a lane that can proceed through
an intersection during an hour of uninterrupted flow.
• Saturation flow can vary significantly between intersections and times of day. Factors
that affect saturation flow rates are:
o Motorists’ characteristics
o Heavy vehicles
o Grade, lane width, type of lane
o Presence of adjacent parking lane
o Intersection location (CBD vs. other)

• Some don’ts:
o Do not use a saturation flow estimate from a steep approach to analyze a flat
approach.
o Do not record data if a heavy vehicle is in one of the first seven positions in the
queue.
o Do not record data during a signal phase in which traffic flow is interrupted by
buses, left-turn traffic waiting for gaps in opposing traffic, or right-turning traffic
waiting for pedestrians to clear.

• HCM has procedures for calculating interrupted saturation flow from ideal saturation
flow.
• Saturation flow rate studies are usually conducted with a stopwatch or computer
software, or video recordings.

o Stopwatch method:
 Take a good vantage points near the stop mark of the lane approach and have
a clear view that extends about 60m upstream.
 Start stopwatch when the rear axle of the fourth vehicle in a queue that had
been stationary while waiting for the green signal crosses the stop mark. This
is the point where an average queue of vehicles begins to keep consistent
headways. The first three vehicles experience startup losses.
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  Record the time when the rear axle of the seventh, eighth, ninth, or tenth
vehicle in the queue (whichever was the last vehicle in the stopped queue at
the instant the signal turned green) crosses the stop mark.
 Observer cannot record a measurement if the queue is less than seven vehicles
long when the signal turns green, because short queues provide unstable data.
 If the queue is more than 10 vehicles long, stop the watch at the 10th vehicle.
Ten vehicles is a convenient maximum that decreases the chances of error
because of spillback or due to vehicles stopping for the red signal.
 Ignore vehicles joining the queue after the green signal appears.
 Record saturation flow data for one lane at a time.

• Use the following equation to calculate desirable sample size for a saturation flow
study, when mean saturated flow rate is the statistic of interest.

Z 2
N = �S ∗ �
E

Where:
N = Minimum sample size
S = Estimated sample standard deviation of saturation flow rates (typically,140 vph)
Z = Standard normal deviate corresponding to a desired confidence level
= 1.96 for 95%; 2.055 for 98%; 2.58 for 99% confidence
E = Permitted error or tolerance in the saturation flow rate

• Mean saturation flow rate is estimated by calculating an average number of seconds

consumed per vehicle (e.g., headway) and converting that into number of vehicles per
hour.

3600 ∗ Total Number of Observations

Mean Saturation Flow =
∑ 7th Veh. ∑ 8th Veh. ∑ 9th Veh. ∑ 10th Veh.
� �+ � �+� �+� �
3 4 5 6

Pedestrian Walking Speed

• Walking speed is used in pedestrian studies (e.g., crosswalks)
• Walking speeds are affected by pedestrian characteristics (volume, age, gender,
physical fitness), walking path (grade and width) and the traffic (speed and distance)
• Perform the study at the location of interest under the conditions of interest
• Mark a measured distance along the path traveled by the pedestrians and then time
individual pedestrians through the speed trap. A sample of 100 observations is
generally adequate for each class of pedestrian (e.g., children, adults, aged).
• For each class of pedestrian, calculate each individual walking speed by dividing the
trap distance by the observed time.

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• Plot the cumulative percentage of speeds by pedestrian class to obtain cumulative
speed curve from which values of various speed percentiles may be derived.
• The 15th percentile speed is often used in timing signals for pedestrians.
• Bicycle travel speed studies are performed similarly.

PARKING STUDIES
• Parking studies are used to determine demand for and supply of parking facilities, and
to forecast demand.
• Two types of parking facilities: on-street parking and off-street parking
o On-street Parking: Parking bays are alongside the curbs of streets
o Off-street Parking: They include parking lots and garages. A garage is a building
where vehicles are parked for a fee.

Parking Terminologies
• Space-hour: defines the use of a single parking space for one hour.
• Parking Volume: total number of vehicles that park in a study area during a specific
period, typically a day.
• Parking Accumulation: number of parked vehicles in a study area at any specified
time. Parking accumulation can be plotted against time to show the variation of
parking accumulation during the day. This curve is parking accumulation curve.
• Parking Load: area under parking accumulation curve. It is also obtained by
multiplying the number of vehicles occupying the parking area at each time interval
by the time interval. It is expressed in vehicle hours.
• Parking Duration: length of time a vehicle is parked at a parking bay or stall.
• Average Parking Duration: parking load divided by number of vehicles parked. It
indicates how frequently a parking space becomes available.
• Parking Turnover: it indicates the rate of use of a parking space. It is calculated by
dividing the parking volume for a specified period by the number of parking spaces.
It is expressed as the number of vehicles per bay per time duration.
• Parking Index or Parking Occupancy or Efficiency: It provides an overall
indication of the effective use of a parking space. It is calculated as the ratio of the
number of parking spaces occupied in a period to the total spaces available; that is:

Parking Load
Parking Index = ∗ 100
Parking Capacity

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 Parking Study Methodology
• A comprehensive parking study comprises four major tasks:
o Inventory of parking facilities
o Data collection on parking accumulation, parking turnover and parking duration
o Identification of parking generators
o Collection of information on parking demand

Inventory of Parking Facilities

• Detailed documentation of characteristics of parking facilities, including:
o Location of parking facilities and type of ownership (public or private)
o Type and number of parking spaces at each parking facility
o Times of operation and limit on operation of parking, if any
o Restrictions on use (open or closed to the public)
o Parking bay dimensions and angle of parking

Collection of Parking Data

• Accumulation:
o Count the number of parked vehicles during regular intervals (e.g., hourly) on
different days
o The study duration depends on the operation times of the parking generators
o Determine hourly variations of parking and peak periods of parking demand.
o A parking accumulation curve is below. What is the peak demand and the hour it
occurred?

• Turnover and Duration:

o Record the license plate of the vehicle parked on each parking space at the ends of
fixed intervals of time during the study period (e.g., every 30 minutes)
o Electronic data collection is possible, where wireless sensors detect the arrival and
departure of a vehicle at a parking space.
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 o Parking turnover is calculated by counting the number of vehicles parked in a
timeframe, and dividing it by the number of parking spaces in the facility.

Number of Different Vehicles Parked

Turnover =
Number of Parking Spaces

Identification of Parking Generators

• Identify parking generators (e.g., shopping centers, sports stadium, schools) and
locating these on a map of the study area.

Information on Parking Demand

• Conduct parking interviews at the various parking facilities listed during the
inventory to collect information on trip origins, trip purposes, drivers’ destination
after parking, times of arrival and vehicle type.
• Parking duration may also be estimated from models

Parking Data Analysis

• Relevant information from parking studies include:
o Number and duration for vehicles
o Space-hours of demand for parking
o Supply of parking facilities

• The space-hours of demand for parking are obtained from the following equation:
N

𝐷𝐷 = �(ni t i )
i=1

Where:
D = Space vehicle-hours demand for a specific period
N = Number of classes of parking duration
ti = Mid-parking duration of class i
ni = Number of vehicles parked for the ith duration range

The space-hours of supply are obtained from the expression:

N

S = f �(t i )
i=1

Where:
S = Practical number of space-hours of supply for a specific period
N = Number of parking spaces available
ti = Total length of time (hours) when the ith space be parked on during
the specified period
f = Efficiency factor

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 The efficiency factor accounts for time lost in each turnover. It is determined based on
the best performance a parking facility is expected to provide. Typical values are:
• Curb parking – 78 to 96% (Average 90%)
• Parking lots and garages – 75 to 92%
• Average for parking lots – 85%
• Average for garages – 80%

On-Street Parking Layout

Parallel Parking 30o Parking 45o Parking 60o Parking 90o Parking
o o o
Parking is along road length Parking is 30 w.r.t. road Parking is 45 w.r.t. road Vehicles park 30 w.r.t. Parking is parallel to
No backward movement when centerline. Better maneuverability centerline road centerline road centerline
parking or exiting
Safest parking due to least Also, causes minimum disruption Considerable disruption to Considerable disruption Complex maneuvering
disruption to traffic flow to traffic flow traffic flow to traffic flow when parking and max.
obstruction to traffic
Consumes maximum curb length More vehicles park compared to Parking capacity increases with More vehicles park Consumes max. road
(less vehicles for a given curb parallel parking parking angle. More vehicles width, parks max.
length) park c/f parallel and 30o parking vehicles for a given
curb length

Length (L) to park N vehicles:

Assuming standard car dimensions Length (L) to park N Length (L) to park N
of 5.0 x 2.5m. Length (L) to park N vehicles: L = 1.77+ 3.54N vehicles: vehicles:

Length (L) of curb needed to park L = 0.58 + 5N L = 2.16 + 2.89N L = 2.5N

N vehicles:

L = 5.9 N

(Images: https://www.civil.iitb.ac.in/tvm/1100_LnTse/535_lnTse/plain/plain.html)

Travel Time and Delay Studies

• Travel time study measures time required to travel from one point to another on a
given route, as well as collection of information on the locations, durations and
causes of delay.
• Applications of travel time and delay studies include:
o Roadway capacity analysis
o Identification of locations with high delays and the causes of the delays
o Evaluation of effectiveness of traffic operation improvement measures
o Economic analysis of alternative traffic operation measures
o Determination of congestion indices for various routes

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Terminologies
o Travel time: the time it takes a vehicle to traverse a roadway section
o Running time: the time a vehicle is in motion while traversing a roadway section
o Delay: the difference between the actual travel time and the travel time that would be
obtained assuming a vehicle traverses the study section at an average speed equal to
that for uncongested traffic flow.
 Operational delay: the part of the delay caused by the impedance of other traffic
(e.g., parking, reduction in number of lanes)
 Stopped-time delay: the part of the delay during which the vehicle is at rest
 Control delay: the part of the delay caused by TCDs (e.g., traffic signals)

Methods for Performing Travel Time and Delay Studies

(a) Floating-Car Technique

o Identify the test section
o Drive test car along the test section, approximating the average travel speed
o Record the time taken to traverse the study section
o Note the time that elapses each time the vehicle is stopped and the reason for the stop.
Sum these times for any test run to obtain the stopped-time delay for that run
o Repeat the test run and the average time is taken as the travel time

(b) License-Plate Observations

o Identify the test section and position observers at the start and end of the section.
o Position observers at other locations if elapsed times at those points are needed.
o Each observer records the license plate number of vehicles that passe together with
the time the vehicles pass.
o Match the times of arrival at the start point and end point of the test section for each
license plate number recorded.
o The difference between these times is the travel time of each vehicle. Take the
average to obtain the travel time for the section
o The study can be conducted by taking a video of the vehicles.

Axle Load Studies

• Traffic volume and weight (axle loads) are required for pavement design.
• Different vehicles have different axle types
• Different axle types induced different amount of pavement damage

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 Axle Types

Single axle, single tyres Single axle, dual tyres

Tandem axle, single tyres Tandem axle, dual tyres

Tridem axle, single tyres Tridem axle, dual tyres

Quad axle, single tyres Quad axle, dual tyres

Exercise: Identify the axle configurations in the following vehicles.

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 Axle Load Survey Resource

Equivalent Axle Load Factor (EALF)

• Traffic stream has several vehicle types, with variable axle types and loads
• Different axle types and loads cause different amount of pavement damage
• Equivalent axle load factor (EALF) compares the damaging effect of various axle
types and loads to that of a standard axle.
• EALF is damage per pass by an axle c/f damage per pass of a standard axle.
• AASHO Road Test adopted 18,000 pounds (80-kN, 8.2 tonnes, 8,200 kg) single axle
(dual tyres) as standard axle.

Simplified EALF Equation

𝐜𝐜
𝐀𝐀𝐀𝐀𝐀𝐀𝐀𝐀 𝐋𝐋𝐋𝐋𝐋𝐋𝐋𝐋
𝐄𝐄𝐄𝐄𝐄𝐄𝐄𝐄 𝐩𝐩𝐩𝐩𝐩𝐩 𝐚𝐚𝐚𝐚𝐚𝐚𝐚𝐚 = � �
𝐒𝐒𝐒𝐒𝐒𝐒𝐒𝐒𝐒𝐒𝐒𝐒𝐒𝐒𝐒𝐒 𝐀𝐀𝐀𝐀𝐀𝐀𝐀𝐀 𝐋𝐋𝐋𝐋𝐋𝐋𝐋𝐋

• GHA Pavement Design Manual specifies c = 4.5

• Larger c-values yield larger EALFs, which yields thicker pavements.

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