Capacity and Level of Service

Al-Balqa Applied University
Faculty of Engineering Technology

Department of Civil Engineering
Highway Engineering : Capacity and Level of Service
TO: Dr.Majeed Msalam
By : Abdulmajeed Khandakji
30915021628
Capacity and Level of
Service
Overview
Capacity and Level of service are two related terms. Capacity

analysis tries to give a clear understanding of how much traffic a given
transportation facility can accommodate. Level of service tries to answer
how good is the present traffic situation on a given facility. Thus it gives
a qualitative measure of traffic, where as capacity analysis gives a
quantitative measure of a facility. Capacity and level of service varies
with the type of facility, prevailing traffic and road conditions etc. These
concepts are discussed in this report.
Capacity
Capacity is defined as the maximum number of vehicles,

passengers, or the like, per unit time, which can be accommodated
under given conditions with a reasonable expectation of occurrence.
Some of the observations that are found from this definition can be now
discussed. Capacity is independent of the demand. It speaks about the
physical amount of vehicles and passengers a road can afford. It does
not depend on the total number of vehicles demanding service. On the
other hand, it depends on traffic conditions, geometric design of the
road etc. For example, a curved road has lesser capacity compared to a
straight road. Capacity is expressed in terms of units of some specific
thing (car, people, etc.), so it also does depend on the traffic
composition. In addition, the capacity analysis depends on the
environmental conditions too. Capacity is a probabilistic measure and it
varies with respect to time and position. Hence it is not always possible
to completely derive analytically the capacity. In most cases it is
obtained, through field observations.
Level of service
A term closely related to capacity and often confused with it is service

volume. When capacity gives a quantitative measure of traffic, level of
service or LOS tries to give a qualitative measure. A service volume is
the maximum number of vehicles, passengers, or the like, which can be
accommodated by a given facility or system under given conditions at a
given level of service.
For a given road or facility, capacity could be constant. But actual flow
will be different for different days and different times in a day itself. The
intention of LOS is to relate the traffic service quality to a given flow rate
of traffic. It is a term that designates a range of operating conditions on
a particular type of facility. Highway capacity manual (HCM) developed
by the transportation research board of USA provides some procedure
to determine level of service. It divides the quality of traffic into six levels
ranging form level A to level F. Level A represents the best quality of
traffic where the driver has the freedom to drive with free flow speed and
level F represents the worst quality of traffic. Level of service is defined
based on the measure of effectiveness or (MOE). Typically three
parameters are used under this and they are speed and travel time,
density and delay. One of the important measures of service quality is
the amount of time spent in travel. Therefore, speed and travel time are
considered to be more effective in defining LOS of a facility. Density
gives the proximity of other vehicles in the stream. Since it affects the
ability of drivers to maneuver in the traffic stream, it is also used to
describe LOS. Delay is a term that describes excess or unexpected time
spent in travel. Many specific delay measures are defined and used as
MOE's in the highway capacity manual.
Types of facilities
Most important classification of transportation facilities from the

engineering perspective is based on the continuity of flow, that
is uninterrupted flow and interrupted flow. Uninterrupted flow is the flow
of traffic in which there is no obstructions to the movement of vehicles
along the road. Freeway is one example for this type of facility. In a
freeway, when a vehicle enters a freeway, there is no need for the
vehicle to stop anywhere till it leaves the freeway. There are three
sections in a freeway - basic unit, weaving section and ramps(on/off).
Vehicles will be entering the freeway through ramps. Ramps used for
entering the freeway is called on-ramps and those used for exiting the
freeway are called off-ramps. Freeways generally have 4, 6, or 8 lane
alignments. Multi lanes also provide uninterrupted flow. HCM defines
the levels of service of freeway sections based on density, as described
in tables 1and 2.
Table 1: LOS for a basic freeway

segment
LOS K FFS v/c
(veh/km/lane) (Km/hr)
Table 2: LOS A 0-7 120 0.35
B 7-11 120 0.55 for an intersection
C 11-16 114 0.77
LOS Control Delay Delay
D 16-22 99 0.92
E 22-28 85 1.0
sec/veh(signalized) sec/veh (unsignalized
F
A
B 10-20 10-15
C 20-35 15-25
D 35-55 25-35
E 55-80 35-50
F
In many roads, there will be signalized as well as unsignalized

intersections. Uninterrupted flow is possible in sections of rural and
suburban multilane highways between signalized intersections where
signal spacing is sufficient to allow for uninterrupted flow. Two lane
highways also provide uninterrupted flow facilities.
Interrupted flow refers to the condition when the traffic flow on the road
is obstructed due to some reasons. This is experienced in signalized
intersections, unsignalized intersections, arterials etc. At signalized
intersections, there will be some kind of active control and the vehicle
will have to stop or sometimes to reduce its speed and the flow of traffic
is interrupted. Thus the capacity is defined in terms of control delay i.e.
sec/veh. Arterials are roads of long stretches with many intersections in
between and obviously there will be interruption to the flow of traffic.
Here, the capacity is expressed in terms of average travel speed. Some
other facilities are facilities for pedestrians, bicycles, bus-transit, rail-
transit etc. Example for pedestrian facility is a provision of subway
exclusively for the use of pedestrians. Here, the capacity may be
expressed in terms of number of passengers. In bus transit system, the
buses has to stop at the bus bays and also it has to share the road with
the other vehicles. Hence the capacity will be affected by the control
characteristics and the traffic conditions prevailing in the road. Since
trains have exclusive right of way, the capacity is strictly governed by
the control characteristics. It has two types of capacities - line capacity
and station capacity. Line capacity is based on the number of tracks
available between two stations. Station capacity refers to the facilities
available in the platform of the station and other facilities.
For uninterrupted flow of traffic, measure of effectiveness (MOE) is

density in freeways. Speed also becomes important in two-lane
highways and multilane highways. In the case of interrupted flow, MOE
is delay. The delay of travel time becomes an important factor in
calculating the capacity.
Highway capacity
Highway capacity is defined by the Highway Capacity Manual as the
maximum hourly rate at which persons or vehicles can be reasonably
expected to traverse a point or a uniform segment of a lane or roadway
during a given time period under prevailing roadway, traffic and control
conditions. The highway capacity depends on certain conditions as
listed below;
1. Traffic conditions: It refers to the traffic composition in the road
such as the mix of cars, trucks, buses etc in the stream. It also
include peaking characteristics, proportions of turning movements
at intersections and the like.
2. Road way characteristics: This points out to the geometric
characteristics of the road. These include lane width, shoulder
width, lane configuration, horizontal alignment and vertical
alignment.
3. Control conditions: This primarily applies to surface facilities and
often refer to the signals at intersections etc.
Again capacity can be defined for a point or uniform section.

Capacity is estimated for segments having uniform conditions. Points
where these conditions change represent the boundaries where
separate analysis may be required. Capacity is the maximum flow rate
that a facility can afford. This maximum flow rate is taken for the worst
15 minutes of the peak hours while finding out the capacity. Capacity is
measured as a reasonably expected value and not the maximum flow
rate ever observed in the facility. This is because the measured capacity
at a single location will show significant variation from day to day.
Further, local driving habits also produce variations in the observed
capacity.
Factors affecting level of service

The level of service can be derived from a road under different operating
characteristics and traffic volumes. The factors affecting level of service
(LOS) can be listed as follows:
1. Speed and travel time
2. Traffic interruptions/restrictions
3. Freedom to travel with desired speed
4. Driver comfort and convenience
5. Operating cost.
Highway Capacity Manual(HCM) used travel speed and volume by

capacity ratio (v/c ratio) to distinguish between various levels of service.
The value of v/c ratio can vary between 0 and 1. Depending upon the
travel speed and v/c ratio, HCM has defined six levels of service, level A
to level F based on a graph between operating speed and v/c ratio as
shown in the figure 1.
.
Figure 1: Level of service A to F
Level of service A represents the zone of free flow. Here the traffic
volume will be less, traffic will be experiencing free flow also. The
drivers will be having the complete freedom to choose their desired
speed. Even at maximum density, for this LOS the average spacing
between vehicles is 167 m. Lane changes within the traffic stream, as
well as merging and diverging movements, are made relatively easy.
The effect of minor incidents and point breakdowns are easily aborted at
this level. Level of service B represents zone of reasonably free flow.
Free flow speeds are still maintained at this level of service. The drivers
freedom to choose their desired speed is only slightly restricted. The
lowest average spacing between vehicles is about 100 m. The effects of
small incidents and point breakdowns are still easily contained. At level
of service C, the presence of other vehicles begins to restrict the
maneuverability within the traffic stream. Average speeds remain at or
near the free flow speed level, but significant increase in driver vigilance
is required at this level. Minimum average spacing between the vehicles
is in the range of 67 m. Queues may be expected to form behind any
significant blockage. At level of service D, the average speeds begin to
decline with increasing flows. Freedom to maneuver within the traffic
stream is noticeably restricted. At this level, density deteriorates more
quickly with flow. The spacing between the vehicles is about 50 m. As
the traffic stream has little space to absorb disruptions, minor incidents
can lead to queuing of vehicles. Level of service E define operation at
capacity. At this level, the stream reaches it's maximum density limit.
There will be no usable gaps in the stream and even slight disruptions
will cause a breakdown, with queues forming rapidly behind the
disruption. Maneuvering within the traffic stream becomes extremely
difficult. Level of service F describes conditions in a queue that has
formed behind a point of breakdown or disruption. As vehicles shuffle
through the queue, there may be periods when they move quickly, and
others when they are stopped completely. Thus this level of service is
used to describe the point of breakdown as well, eventhough operations
downstream of such a breakdown may appear good. Level of service F
represents the region of forced flow, having low speed, and complete
breakdown of the system .
Summary
Capacity and level of service are two important terms applied to

traffic operation and are given suitable definitions by highway capacity
manual. Capacity represents the ability of the system to handle traffic
whereas level of service looks at the system from the drivers
perspective. The fundamental diagrams of traffic flow can be used in the
representation of level of service. Level of service ranges from level A to
F, representing the free flow conditions and F representing the worst
traffic conditions like less speed, high density etc.

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Al-Balqa Applied University

Faculty of Engineering Technology

Highway Engineering : Capacity and Level of Service

TO: Dr.Majeed Msalam

Capacity and Level of service are two related terms. Capacity

Capacity is defined as the maximum number of vehicles,

A term closely related to capacity and often confused with it is service

Most important classification of transportation facilities from the

Table 1: LOS for a basic freeway

In many roads, there will be signalized as well as unsignalized

For uninterrupted flow of traffic, measure of effectiveness (MOE) is

Again capacity can be defined for a point or uniform section.

Factors affecting level of service

Highway Capacity Manual(HCM) used travel speed and volume by

Capacity and level of service are two important terms applied to

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