CE-751 Urban Transportation Systems Planning

Assignment No. 01

Transportation

Date of submission : 02/09/2013

Submitted by: Dheeraj Vijay Sawant 133040004

Table of Contents
1.1. 1.2. Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1 Meaning and advantages of transportation .................................................................... 1 1.2.1. 1.2.2. 1.2.2.1. 1.2.2.2. 1.2.2.3. 1.2.2.4. 1.2.2.5. 1.3. Meaning of transportation ................................................................................... 1 Advantages of transportation ............................................................................. 1 Growth of industries ............................................................................................. 1 Create new markets ............................................................................................... 2 Provide better basic facilities to people ................................................................ 2 Overall development of the country ..................................................................... 2 Stabilization of prices ........................................................................................... 2

Means of transport ......................................................................................................... 2 1.3.1. 1.3.2. 1.3.3. 1.3.4. 1.3.5. 1.3.6. 1.3.7. Land Transport .................................................................................................... 3 Road transport ..................................................................................................... 3 Rail transport ....................................................................................................... 3 Water transport.................................................................................................... 3 Inland water transport ......................................................................................... 3 Ocean transport ................................................................................................... 3 Air transport ........................................................................................................ 4

1.4.

Problems related to transportation ................................................................................. 4 1.4.1. 1.4.2. 1.4.3. 1.4.4. 1.4.5. Accidents............................................................................................................. 4 Congestion .......................................................................................................... 4 Seasonal nature ................................................................................................... 4 Large initial investment ...................................................................................... 4 Air Pollution........................................................................................................ 5

1.4.6. 1.5. 1.6.

Environmental Impact ......................................................................................... 5

Transportation engineering: ........................................................................................... 5 Transportation planning: ....................................................................................... 6 Geometric design: ................................................................................................. 6 Pavement analysis and design:.............................................................................. 6 Traffic Engineering : ............................................................................................. 6 References ...................................................................................................................... 6

Assignment No. 01

Transportation
1.1. Introduction
From the beginning of history, the need for mobility has been the driving force behind the progress of mankind. The history of transport marks the history of any civilization. The Romans became one of the most successful civilization in history mainly due the importance they gave to develop connectivity in their region of interest. One of the biggest inventions in the history of mankind, the wheel, also was done to facilitate this movement. Thus it can be seen that transport has been the milestone in the road to success at many occasions in the past. Over the years, the modes of transportation may have changed, but the aim continues to be the same; to provide easy, fast and efficient movement of men and materials from one place to another.

1.2. Meaning and advantages of transportation

This topic explains the meaning of the word Transportation and its various advantages.

1.2.1. Meaning of transportation

Transport or transportation is the movement of people and goods from one place to another. The term transport is derived from the Latin words trans (across) and portare (to carry). It is characterized by infrastructure being used, goods being transported etc.

1.2.2. Advantages of transportation

1.2.2.1. Growth of industries Industries which require quick consumption of goods are facilitated by speedy transportation systems. Proper facilities help export of perishable goods like fish, vegetables even to distant markets.

1.2.2.2. Create new markets Better transport facilities opens up newer markets and new customers to earlier unknown industry eg. Good connectivity can help a place to be developed as a major tourist destination as has been in the case of Thailand or Singapore. With proper geographic location, these places have developed the required infra to become the largest stopover spots for trans-ocean water transport. 1.2.2.3. Provide better basic facilities to people Climatic factors and difficult terrain prove to be the major hindrance in provision of medical facilities as well as during disaster management. Proper road and air connectivity helps in overcoming these problems. 1.2.2.4. Overall development of the country In this era of competition, no country in the world can boast of self-sustainment. Importexport of goods form an integral part and for this, development of transport facilities is important. A country like China has progressed leaps and bounds over last three decades solely because it has transformed itself to an economy suited to export more than anyone else. 1.2.2.5. Stabilization of prices Better connectivity helps in increasing the horizon for industry as mentioned earlier. This in turn increases competition thus causing the businesses to maintain competitive prices and stabilizing them overall by avoiding the problem of monopoly.

1.3. Means of transport

Mainly transport is classified into three sub sections, namely; Land transport Water transport Air transport

Transport of liquids may also be considered as a separate sub-section pipeline transport. 2

1.3.1. Land Transport

Land transport is further divided into road transport and rail transport.

1.3.2. Road transport

Roadway is the oldest and the most basic mode of transport known to mankind. Road transport is further divided as vehicular transport i.e. for use by cars, trucks, buses etc. and non- vehicular transport i.e. like pathways to be used by animals.

1.3.3. Rail transport

Rail transport has been the stimulating factor for industrial growth. Rail transport proves to be more feasible when it comes to bulk land transport of materials such as coal, petroleum etc.

1.3.4. Water transport

Water transport is the cheapest and oldest form of transport when bulk goods transport over large distances is involved. Water transport is further divided into inland transport and ocean transport.

1.3.5. Inland water transport

Inland transport is one which makes use of river or artificial canals for transportation and thus is classified as river transport and canal transport respectively.

1.3.6. Ocean transport

Ocean transport is useful for all the bulk transport between continents. Though it is the slowest of all the means, it proves to be the cheapest of all. Further ocean transport is classified as passenger transport eg. Cruise liners and goods transport eg. Oil tankers, cargo ships etc.

1.3.7. Air transport

It is a recent addition to the means of transport when compared to other modes. The first flight which took place in 1903 lasted for 12 seconds. The development of air transport gained importance after the First World War. It is the fastest means of transport but is comparatively expensive. It can be also subdivided into passenger transport and cargo transport.

1.4. Problems related to transportation

Though development of transportation means has been the backbone of progress, there are some problems which accompany it.

1.4.1. Accidents
Over the years, the average speed of mobility has increased, but with it the number of fatal accidents taking place has too. Every year lakhs of people lose their lives in road accidents and an equal number are left paralysed.

1.4.2. Congestion
Better the facilities, bigger get the problems. For e.g. as road transport got better and better, the number of people using personal vehicles increased tremendously and with this the problem of congestion in cities has cropped up.

1.4.3. Seasonal nature

Land, air or water, all the three types of transport are rendered useless when it comes to extreme weather.

1.4.4. Large initial investment

Any infrastructure development requires large initial investment . This proves to be a major roadblock when any new transportation project is initiated.

1.4.5. Air Pollution

Any transportation system requires use of fuels. Burning of these fuels lets out many harmful gases like CO2, CO etc. into the atmosphere resulting into air pollution which has become a severe problem. Though today use of environmental friendly fuels is being encouraged, the development in that technology has still got a long way to go.

1.4.6. Environmental Impact

Construction of any new infrastructure project may require clearing of land which adversely affect the environment. Also the extraction of large amount of energy resources for running the transport system also has its impact.

1.5. Transportation engineering:

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 is known as transportation engineering. Good transportation planning is that which provides safe, rapid, comfortable, convenient, economical, and environmentally compatible movement of both goods and people. This profession carries a distinct societal responsibility. Transportation planners and engineers recognize the fact that transportation systems constitute a potent force in shaping the course of regional development. Planning and development of transportation facilities generally raises living standards and enhances the aggregate of community values. Transportation engineering requires co-ordination with different fields of engineering like mechanical for vehicles, chemical for fuel, electrical and electronics for communications and control systems etc. It is a multi-disciplinary field involving economic aspects, environmental aspects, planning aspects, statistics, law, psychology and human behavior and public administration. A proper balance between all these things along with proper engineering application leads to a smooth functioning of a transportation system. 5

The four major disciplines of transportation engineering are:

Transportation planning:
It involves development of a transport model fulfilling current and future traffic requirements.

Geometric design:
It involves physical proportioning of transport facilities which includes cross sectional features, vertical alignment, horizontal alignment etc.

Pavement analysis and design:

It deals with the structural design of both flexible and rigid pavements.

Traffic Engineering :
Traffic engineering covers a broad range of engineering applications with a focus on the safety of the public, the efficient use of transportation resources, and the mobility of people and goods. Traffic engineering involves a variety of engineering and management skills, including design, operation, and system optimization.

1.6. References
1. Transportation Research Board | Main.2013. Transportation Research Board Available at: http://www.trb.org/Main/Home.aspx [Accessed 28 July 2013] 2. Fundamentals of Transportation Wikibooks, open books for an open world.2013. Fundamentals of Transportation Wikibooks, open books for an open world. Availabe at http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Fundamentals_of_Transportation [Accessed 28 July 2013]