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CHAPTER 2
BULCHA B.(MSC)
TRAFFIC ENGINEERING STUDIES
Methods of Conducting Volume Counts
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Two methods:
 Manual and

 Automatic

Manual
 involves one or more persons recording observed
vehicles using a counter
disadvantages
 it is labor-intensive
 it is subject to the limitations of human factors
 it cannot be used for long periods of counting
 Cont…
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Typical equipment needed for manual counts are:

 Tally sheet

 Mechanical count boards or Electronic count boards

During manual data collection breaks of 10 to 15minutes

should be scheduled at least every 2hrs.
 Cont…
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Automatic
 involves the laying of surface detectors (such as pneumatic
road tubes) or subsurface detectors (such as magnetic or
electric contact devices) on the road.
traffic volume studies
Different types of traffic counts are carried out depending on the
use of data:
 Cordon counts

 Screen line counts

 Intersection counts

 Pedestrian volume counts

 Periodic volume counts (continuous, control and coverage counts)

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1.Cordon counts
 Is used when information is required on vehicles
accumulation within an area, eg. Central business
district.
 The intersection of each street crossing the cordon line
is taken as a count station; volume counts of vehicles
and/or persons entering and leaving the cordon area
are taken
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The information obtained are useful for;

 Parking facility

 Updating and evaluating traffic operational

techniques
 Making long range plans for freeway
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2.screen line counts

The study area is divided into large sections by imaginary
lines such as rivers, railway tracks.
3. Intersection counts
Undertaken to determine vehicle classification ,through
movement and turning movements at intersections.
Used for determining;
 Phase length

 Cycle times for signalized intersection

 Channelization at the intersection

 Cont…
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4.Pedestrian volume counts

Is usually taken when evaluation of existing or proposed
pedestrian facilities is to be undertaken.
Made at;
 Mid blocks

 Cross walks

 Transit stations
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5.Periodic volume counts

 In order to obtain traffic volume data such as AADT

which is continuous count.
 But since continuous data collection is cost and tedious
;periodic volume count are used to calculate expansion
factors needed to estimate the annual traffic volume.
 Cont…
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Typical counting periods are:

 24hrs …..1 or more 24 hour period
 16 hrs…...6am – 10pm (90-95% of daily traffic)
 12 hrs…...7am – 7pm(about 75% of daily traffic)
 Peak periods….7am – 9am & 4pm – 6pm
 Weeks…….6pm Friday – 6am Monday
Expansion factors from continuous count stations
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 1. Hourly expansion factor(HEF)

= total volume of 24hr/volume for particular hour
 2.Daily expansion factor(DEF)

=average total volume for a week/average volume for

particular day
 3.Monthly expansion factor(MEF)

=AADT/ADT for particular month

 Traffic Volume Data Presentation
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conventional data presentation techniques are:

 Traffic Flow Maps

 Intersection Summary Sheets

 Time-Based Distribution Charts

 Summary Tables
 Travel time and delay studies
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 A travel time study determines the amount of time

required to travel from one point to another on a given
route.
 Data obtained from travel time and delay studies give a
good indication of the level of service on the study
section.
 Cont…
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Applications of Travel Time and Delay Data

The data obtained from travel time and delay studies may
be used in any one of the following traffic engineering
tasks:
 Determination of the efficiency of a route with respect to

its ability to carry traffic

 Identification of locations with relatively high delays and
the causes for those delays
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 Performance of before-and-after studies to evaluate

the effectiveness of traffic operation improvements
 Determination of relative efficiency of a route by
developing sufficiency ratings or congestion indices
 Determination of travel times on specific links for use in
trip assignment models
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 Compilation of travel time data that may be used in

trend studies to evaluate the changes in efficiency
and level of service with time
 Performance of economic studies in the evaluation
of traffic operation alternatives that reduce travel
time.
 Definition of Terms Related to Time and Delay Studies
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 Travel time is the time taken by a vehicle to traverse a

given section of a highway
 Running time is the time a vehicle is actually in motion
while traversing a given section of a highway.
 Delay is the time lost by a vehicle due to causes beyond
the control of the driver.
 Operational delay is that part of the delay caused by
the impedance of other traffic(for example, parking or
un parking vehicles, reduction in capacity of the highway)
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 Stopped-time delay is that part of the delay during which

the vehicle is at rest
 Fixed delay is that part of the delay caused by control
devices such as traffic signals. This delay occurs regardless
of the traffic volume or the impedance that may exist.
 Travel-time delay is the difference between the actual
travel time and the time that will be obtained by assuming
that a vehicle traverses the study section at an average
speed equal to that for an uncontested traffic flow on the
section being studied.
 Methods for Conducting Travel Time and Delay Studies
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Grouped into two general categories:

1. Those using a test vehicle and
2. Those not requiring a test vehicle.
Methods Requiring a Test Vehicle
This category involves three possible techniques:
 1.Floating-car,

 2.Average-speed and

 3.Moving-vehicle techniques
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Methods Not Requiring a Test Vehicle

 1.License-plate method and
 2.The interview method
 Cont…
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Floating-Car Technique
 Here the test car is driven by an observer along the test
section so that the test car "floats" with the traffic.
 The driver of the test vehicle attempts to pass as many
vehicles as those that pass his test vehicle.
 The time taken to traverse the study section is recorded.
 The minimum number of test runs can be determined
using values of the T-distribution;
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 N = sample size (minimum number of test runs),

 s = standard deviation (mph),
 d = limit of acceptable error in the speed estimate
(mph),
 = = value of the student's t distribution with (1 - a/2)
confidence level and (N - 1) degrees of freedom,
 a = significance level
 Cont…
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limits are commonly used:

 Before-and-after studies: ±1.0 to ±3.0 mph

 Traffic operation, economic evaluations, and trend

analyses: ±2.0 to ±4.0

 Highway needs and transportation planning studies:

±3.0 to ±5.0 mph

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Average-Speed Technique
This technique involves driving the test car along the length
of the test section at a speed that, in the opinion of the
driver, is the average speed of traffic stream.
Moving-Vehicle Technique(Loop method)
 the observer makes a round trip on a test section like ;

where it is assumed that the road runs east-west.

 Cont…
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 The observer starts collecting the relevant data at section

X-X, drives the car eastward to section Y-Y, and then
turns the vehicle around and drives westward to section
X-X again.
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 The following data are collected as the test vehicle

makes the round trip:
 The time it takes to travel from X-X to Y-Y (Te), in
minutes
 The time it takes to travel from Y-Y to X-X (Tw), in
minutes
 The number of vehicles traveling west in the
opposite lane while the test car is traveling east
(Ne)
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 The number of vehicles that overtake the test car

while it is traveling from Y-Y to X-X, that is, traveling
in the westbound direction (Ow)
 The number of vehicles that the test car passes while
it is traveling from Y-Y to X-X, that is, traveling in
the westbound direction (Pw)
 Cont…
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 The volume (Vw) in the westbound

 (Ne+ Ow - Pw) is the number of vehicles traveling

westward that cross the line X-X during the time (Te-Tw).
 the average travel time Tw in the westbound direction is
obtained from;
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Methods Not Requiring a Test Vehicle

1.License-plate method
 requires that observers be positioned at the beginning

and end of the test section.

2.The interview method
 is carried out by obtaining information from people

who drive on the study site regarding their travel times,

their experience of delays, and so forth.
 Parking studies
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Types of Parking Facilities

 Parking facilities can be divided into two main

groups:
1.On-street and
2.Off-street.
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1.On-Street Parking Facilities

 also known as curb facilities

 Parking bays are provided alongside the curb on one or

both sides of the street.
2.Off-Street Parking Facilities
 may be privately or publicly owned; they include surface

lots and garages

 Parking survey
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 Parking surveys are conducted to collect the parking

statistics. The most common parking surveys conducted
are:
1.in-out survey
2.Fixed period sampling
3.License plate method
 Cont…
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1.in-out survey
 The occupancy count in the selected parking lot is
taken at the beginning
 The number of vehicles that leave the parking lot is
also taken
 The final occupancy in the parking lot also taken
 Here the labor required is very less
 Any data regarding the time duration for which a
particular vehicle used that parking lot not obtained
 Parking duration and turnover is not obtained, hence
we cannot estimate the parking fare from this survey
 Cont…
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2.Fixed period sampling

 All vehicles counted at the beginning of the survey
 Then after a fixed time interval(15min to 1hour) the
count is again taken
 Here there are chances of missing the number of
vehicles
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3.License plate method

 Is the most accurate and realistic data
 Every parking stall is monitored at a continuous
interval of 15minutes
 This will help in calculating the fare
 Very labor intensive
 Definitions of Parking Terms
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 A space-hour is a unit of parking that defines the use of

a single parking space for a period of 1 hr.

 Parking accumulation is the number of parked vehicles

in a study area at any specified time. These data can be
plotted as a curve of parking accumulation against time,
which shows the variation of the parking accumulation
during the day.
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 Parking volume is the total number of vehicles

parked in a study area during a specific length of
time, usually a day, this doesn’t account for
repetition of vehicles.
 Example : parking volume = 5vehicles
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 The parking load is the area under the accumulation curve

between two specific times. it can be obtained by simply
multiplying the number of vehicles occupying the parking
area at each time interval with the time interval.
Parking load=(1+2+1+0+1+2+3+1)*15/60=2.75veh.hour
 Cont…
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 Parking duration is the length of time a vehicle is parked

at a parking bay. When the parking duration is given as
an average, it gives an indication of how frequently a
parking space becomes available.
Average parking duration= parking load/parking volume
=2.75veh.hour/5veh=33min.
 Parking turnover is the rate of use of a parking space.

Parking turnover=parking volume/number of bays available

=(5veh/2hrs)/3bays=0.83veh/hr/bay
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 Parking index: parking index is also called occupancy

or efficiency. It is defined as ratio of number of bays
occupied in a time duration to the total space available.
It gives an aggregate measure of how effectively the
parking space is utilized.
parking index = (parking load/parking capacity)*100
=(2.75veh.hours/(3*2veh.hours))*100=45.83%
 Methods of Parking Studies
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A comprehensive parking study usually involves

 Inventory of existing parking facilities,

 Collection of data on parking accumulation, parking

turnover, and parking duration,

 Identification of parking generators, and

 Collection of information on parking demand.

 Information on related factors, such as financial, legal,

and administrative matters, may also be collected.

 Types of parking facilities
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 1.on street parallel parking

 2.on street perpendicular parking
 3.off street parallel parking
 4.off street perpendicular parking
 5.30 degree parking
 6.45 degree parking
 7.45 degree interlocking and herringbone pattern
 8.60 degree parking
 9.60 degree one way and two way parking
 10.90 degree parking
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1.On street parallel parking

Advantage
 Works well in extremely narrow, linear space
 Produces least obstruction to the ongoing traffic on the
road since at least road width is used
 There is no backward movement
Disadvantage
 Less than ideal visibility of adjacent traffic
 Inefficient use of on street spaces
 Only minimum number of vehicles can be parked
 cont…
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 Cont…
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Refer your references

 ill effects of parking
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 Parking has some ill-effects like congestion, accidents,

pollution, obstruction to fire-fighting operations etc.
 Congestion: Parking takes considerable street space
leading to the lowering of the road capacity . Hence,
speed will be reduced, journey time and delay will also
subsequently increase. The operational cost of the
vehicle increases leading to great economical loss to
the community
 Cont…
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 Accidents: Careless maneuvering of parking and un

parking leads to accidents which are referred to as
parking accidents. Common type of parking
accidents occur while driving out a car from the
parking area, careless opening of the doors of
parked cars, and while bringing in the vehicle to the
parking lot for parking.
 Cont…
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 Environmental pollution: They also cause pollution to

the environment because stopping and starting of
vehicles while parking and un parking results in noise
and fumes. They also affect the aesthetic beauty of
the buildings because cars parked at every available
space creates a feeling that building rises from a
plinth of cars.
 Cont…
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 Obstruction to fire fighting operations: Parked

vehicles may obstruct the movement of firefighting
vehicles. Sometimes they block access to hydrants
and access to buildings.
 Example
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Example 1
 From an in-out survey conducted for a parking area

consisting of 40 bays, the initial count was found to be

25. Table gives the result of the survey .The number of
vehicles coming in and out of the parking lot for a time
interval of 5 minutes is as shown in the table below.
1.Find the accumulation, total parking load, average
occupancy and efficiency of the parking lot.
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