Lecture # 04 Traffic Studies : Part- |Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Module 2:Traffic Engineering Lesson 2.3 Traffic Studies:Part-I Dr. Bhargab Maitra Department of Civil Engineering Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur India cA Email: bhargab@civil.iitkgp.eret.inIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Specific Instructional objectives After completing this lesson the student will be able to Peer ea eM ie-Liem el eel M tie Me lliCielild field techniques + Present traffic volume data in suitable ways * Carry out spot speed studies by field measurement of travel time over a short distanceIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Traffic Studies * Traffic Volume Study Spot Speed Study Speed-delay study Traffic Capacity Study and LOS Origin Destination Study Le tadiire =) Cok Accident studyIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Traffic Volume Studies + Counting is the most fundamental measurement in traffic engineering: Vehicles, Passenger etc. *Counting techniques to produce estimates of volume, rate of flow, demand and capacity ¥ Volume:Number of vehicles (or persons) passing a point during a specified time period (usually one hour but need not be) ¥ Rate of flow: Vehicles (or persons) pass a point during a specified time period less than one hour, expressed as an equivalent hourly rateIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur ¥ Demand: Number of vehicles (or persons) desire to travel past a point during a specified time elem Cer li mel mi leltig) ¥ Capacity: Maximum rate at which vehicles can traverse a point or short segment during a Fy olcel litte Mtn sla (ele | + Volume studies: mid-block locations and intersections + Period for volume studies: Depends on purpose and use of data (peak periods, off-peak period, 12 hour, 16 hour, 24 hour, 7 day, etc.)Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Field Techniques for Volume Studies *Wide variety of techniques and equipment: Paper- pencil, mechanical hand-counters, pneumatic road tubes, satellite based system, etc. *Most studies use simple techniques and basic technology: time, cost, etc. *Common count periods (including short breaks, wherever necessary): ¥ Mid-blocks: 5 minutes,15 minutes, etc. Y Signalized intersections: Equal multiple of cycle lengthIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur WET Meret nai Reco lal(e[t (ety + Relatively inexpensive and can generally be set up in a short period of time + Several parameters can be observed: vehicle occupancy, turning movements, vehicle classification etc. + Involve unique challenges: coordination of personnel, accurate observation & recording of data, organization of data, etc. Paper-Pencil Based Manual Counts + Well designed field sheet and tally marks 1=Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Equipment Aided Manual counts + Mechanical hand-counters: Simplest equipment ¥ Single mechanical hand-counter: Four different items may be recorded (say, four different vehicle types from one approach of an intersection) ¥ Four mechanical counters: Observe four approaches of a typical intersection + Generally data recorded and periodically transferred to field sheets: requires short breaks in countingIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur + Introducing short breaks in counting Y A portion of each counting period is set aside for a short break (say, 13 min out of 15 min or 4 out of 5 min for 60-sec signal cycle or 12 out of 15 min for 90 sec signal cycle) Y Every other count period is used as a short yer 4 + Adjusting short breaks ¥ Assuming the rate of flow during short break same as for the observed portion of the counting period ” Straight line interpolation to estimate the [Me Mele CM ler mi ol-ie lololIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur + Advantageous to use equipment capable of recording and storing data electronically ina machine-readable form that can be directly downloaded to a computer using a data interface Personnel Considerations for Manual Counts + Field sheet to be designed carefully with clarity + Common elements of field sheet: Location, observers’ name, specific movement details, vehicle type details, weather condition, date, day, time, counting period, page ‘x’ of ‘y’ + All personnel must be properly nee e Purpose, field sheets, equipment, location, approach, E®echicle type(s), etc.Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur + Avoid too many observers at one location: may distract drivers and cause traffic disruptions + Time must be carefully coordinated at all locations and among all counting personnel + Number of counting personnel to be decided judiciously + Relief personnel must be provided + Work carried out by counting personnel must be supervisedTTT Me mom rel AGL (| Ls Portable Count Techniques + Include all count equipment using pneumatic road tubes or other temporary detection equipment: can be transported from location to location Pneumatic road tubes + Most frequently used portable equipment SMU ols get Cly-te ee Ce get MrAaTlag + As vehicles pass over the tube, pneumatic pulse is created in the tube and sensed by counters connected to the tube Se remem eb de rele md poole CM i em ))Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur + Average number of axles per vehicle must be Puree te 1a ia Colm Et Ul) lLa cole MULL] the study + Roadside counters can be hooked up to other types of detectors: Example, loop detectors (count vehicle classes directly) + Road tubes may be applied in a variety of ways: ¥ Single road tube stretched across both Cire ol meme \ | ¥ Separate road tubes for each direction of travel rae ~ A sequence of road tubes for lane counts (not a common application)Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Other Considerations + If not fastened firmly to the pavement- road tubes will “whip” when crossed and eventually break + When used across multiple lanes- some simultaneous actuations will occur resulting in slight undercountsIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Permanent Counts + Counting is carried out 24 hours a day, 365 days a Mls + A variety of permanent detectors and data communications interfaces to deliver the results to a remote computer system for storage, Purell cl elme URL es + Permanent count stations on highways specifically for counting traffic volumes and understanding traffic growth, pattern etc.us + Modern actuated signals, toll collection systems, Tite Bee iM lere ue ee merel ule la me (acted col ed to get traffic data mostly for on-line, real time monitoring. Some of these may be designed as permanent count sites + The technology of traffic data collection is advancing rapidly: The cost is a concern for widespread application of advanced technologies * Portable multi parametric detectors can be used to count vehicles, observe speeds, obtain density data, and classify vehicles by length Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur + Use of video imaging and virtual detection is also fepdvancingIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur desta) ome) Menem Cena mL | + Average Daily Traffic (ADT) * Traffic composition * Hourly variation charts + Turning movement diagramFe a E Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Average Daily Traffic (ADT) wdif PUM Ul Rm dtl er Aneel] ols a Traffic compositioneG CEU MU mm el AML | oeLs ——* el AWA ELEC acdIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Turning Movement DiagramIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Spot Speed Studies +Spot Speed: Measurement of speed of vehicles passing a point on a highway «Traffic engineers are generally interested in spot speed studies under conditions of free flow + Spot speed studies are generally not conducted when volumes are in excess of 750-1000 veh/hilane on freeways or 500 veh/h/lane on other uninterrupted flow facilities +*Measurement of speeds of individual vehicles: result is a distribution of speedIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur «Key statistics to describe spot speed distribution: Average or time mean speed, standard deviation, 85'" percentile speed, median, etc. Uses of Spot Speed Data «Studying the effectiveness of speed limits or enforcement practices *Suggesting appropriate speed limits for application «Studying speed trends and assessing the effectiveness of policy on speed limit and enforcementIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur +Studying speed performance with respect to specific design applications: steepness, length of grade, alignment -Investigating high-accident locations where speed is suspected to be a contributing factor Measurement Techniques * Two alternative techniques are generally used v Measurement of travel times as vehicles traverse a short measured distance ¥ Use of hand-held or fixed-mounted radar Psi cled iTate LETA Mie CMM te) AGL (| ole * Several advanced technologies are available but their use is limited: detectors capable of measuring speed and other parameters (multi parametric studies), video technologies, etc . Measurement of travel times as vehicles traverse a element ccr Me (ie Ue) *Simplest, cheapest and easiest method:Manual uses of stopwatches to time vehicles as they traverse an easily recognized trap (i.e. known measured short distance) *Trap can be marked with wide tape or using natural Colm Tatil c-Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur + Observer usually stands at the location of one of the trap boundaries (usually the entry boundary) “Ensures viewing vehicles crossing one boundary without distortion Y Ensures viewing vehicles crossing the other oe A mle m (RMT al] 9) Seal lm alec cred called “Parallax” * Parallax is a systematic error and can be fret acoreacctelIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur els igen o- d, BT eed ei i) i ———— fe] If angle of observation (2) is known, then [o Ao Pan 2) Speed of an individual vehicle is then computed as $,= CIP tc t; is the times for vehicle i to [wa] | traverse the distance doyIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur «Error due to early or late depressing of stopwatch as vehicle crosses either ends of the trap Y Tends to be random and expected to average out with a number of observations Y Can be minimized by using longer trap length (% error is minimized) +*Random error created by human observation of travel times can be eliminated by using a meter to measure the elapsed time between sequential boundaries tomar este d efectiva dividida por el tiempo.Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Question Set 1. Discuss the personnel considerations for manual traffic volume counts 2. Discuss different ways of presentation of traffic volume data 3. What are the different uses of spot speed data? 4, What are the errors normally occur during spot speed studies by field measurement of travel time over a short distance?b Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Answers to Questions of Lesson 2.2 Define uninterrupted-flow facilities. Mention traffic tee eee Cum mua Coie lim tlle PMC Meoceur | Mic-le ole Roem la lole| (od interruptions to the traffic stream: Traffic signals, STOP or YIELD signs, uncontrolled access, etc. * Such facilities include freeways and other limited access roads, long sections of rural highways between signalized intersections, etc. + Stream characteristics depend on individual vehicles, geometric and general environment of =" roadway and NOT on external factorsIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Traffic Stream Parameters a) Speed b) Traffic Volume/Flow Macroscopic measures c) Density Described by a single value of each, which applies to the traffic stream as a whole d) Headway- Microscopic measure Applicable to individual pairs of vehicles within a traffic streamGa. Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur What is the different between time mean speed (TMS) and space mean speed (SMS)? State the relationships between TMS and SMS. Time Mean Speed (Spot speed): Average speed at one point/location over a period of time. It is the arithmetic mean of the speeds observed at a point Space Mean Speed: Average speed of vehicles over a certain road length at any time. It is the harmonic mean of speeds observed at a point Space mean speed < Time mean speedIndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur EL eledill ey Ifo, and ©, are the standard deviations of space mean speed and time mean speed respectively, then relation between ve and mn a _ (oy Litt) iin ie ey a os UrTu LETA Me meme Cate) AGL (| ols Define Passenger Car Equivalency (PCE). Mention the factors affecting PCE values. *Highway Capacity Manual (HCM) defines PCE as “The number of passenger cars that are displaced by a single heavy vehicle of a particular type under prevailing roadway, traffic and control conditions" *PCE is also defined as the number of passenger cars having the same impedance effect as a Nl Me) aM AD cee eal mee EN traffic and control condition Factors affecting PCE + Vehicle characteristics: dimension, speed, power, ge@praking characteristics etc.Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur * Transverse and longitudinal gaps between moving vehicles: function of speed, driver characteristics, etc. + Traffic composition, speed distribution, volume to capacity ratio etc. * Roadway characteristics: gradient, curves, access control, rural or urban road, presence of intersection, type of intersection, etc. * Traffic control and regulation: one way traffic, speed limit, different traffic control devices, etc. «Environmental and climatic condition | =]Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur Show that for Greenshield’s linear speed-density relationship, capacity flow may be expressed as follows. (el, = rt Dies V, is the free-flow speed and K; is the jam density. A es wre s (1)Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur a Now, v,= ra Putting this value in equation (1) aie a se ) ea, mou (2) | ee Q-v.K,-(—v? 8) vy fe) F Speed (v,) Flow (Q) ei Ls) Flow (Q) Density (K)Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur How to obtain the density when flow is maximum? Differentiating equation (2) w.r.t K dQ is 1 ee ed =0 oe a! WE, ary Similarly to obtain the speed when flow is maximum Differentiating equation (3) w.r.t v, Cea ons , i Fa ee ae 4 OS ore