Transportation Engineering
Transportation Engineering
Transportation Engineering
Current Field/Career of
Civil Engineering
Republic of the Philippines
BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY
College of Engineering, Architecture, and Fine Arts
Pablo Borbon Main II, Batangas City
CE 401 – Civil Engineering Orientation
WRITTEN REPORT
TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING
Learning Objectives
The students should be able to:
1. Develop an understanding of transportation engineering as a field/career of civil
engineering,
2. Recognize the different transportation engineering specialties and the duties associated
with it, and
3. Identify and grasp the responsibilities and necessary skills of an engineer in the field of
transportation.
Introduction
Mobility has always been crucial to human society. In today’s world, the need for efficient
and safe transportation has increased so much that the transportation facilities of a state are
considered a mark of its progress, leading to a direct correlation between the two. Transportation
has consistently played an essential role in the advancement of society as it aids in a country’s
development by facilitating trade between regions, reducing travel time cost, and improving
accessibility, initially with regard to trade routes and harbors, but more recently with respect to
land- and air-based frameworks too.
Consequently, a branch of civil engineering, specifically transportation engineering, is the
one accountable with the design, operation, planning and management of transportation
infrastructure, mobility service, traffic, and travellers for various travel modes with the application
of technology and scientific principles (Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics, 2020).
Thus, it is the transportation engineer’s responsibility to plan, design, build, operate and maintain
the systems of transport, in such a way as to provide for the safe, efficient, rapid, comfortable,
convenient, economical, and environmentally sustainable movement of people and goods. They
quantify and optimise our mobility infrastructure networks to meet travel and freight demands,
while ensuring safety, equity and sustainability, at minimal levels of congestion and cost.
Respectively, according to Partha Chakroborty and Animesh Das in their book “Principles
of Transportation Engineering” in 2017, the following are the important disciplines in the field of
transportation engineering.
• Traffic Engineering
This area of transportation engineering manages the analysis, design, and operation
of transportation facilities utilized by vehicles of different transportation modes. Such an
examination assumes utmost significance in the case of roadways as the number of vehicles
using the transportation facilities are the highest as well as the most varied in terms of their
type, origins and destinations, purposes, etc. The USA based Institute of Transportation
Engineers, ITE, characterizes traffic engineering as “that phase of transportation
engineering which deals with planning, geometric design and traffic operations of roads,
streets and highways, their networks, terminals, abutting lands, and relationship with other
modes of transportation.”
• Pavement Engineering
This area of transportation engineering deals with the structural analysis and design
of the way used by different transportation modes. Specifically, pavement engineering is
concerned with (i) the analysis, structural design, construction, and maintenance
of roadway pavements, runways, taxiways, and rail tracks and their drainage and other
associated structures, and (ii) the materials used in the construction of all such structures.
• Public Transportation
The area of public transportation is concerned with the analysis, design, and
operation of public transportation systems. A public transportation is a transportation
system that operates to move the general public from one point to another. The design of a
public transportation system includes the design of routes (including stop locations), design
of schedules, determination of fare structures, and crew scheduling.
• Transport Planning
Transport planning deals with planning transportation facilities that will be able to
meet the present and future needs in a sustainable manner. This field focuses on issues like
estimation of future demands, needs and problems; generation of alternative transportation
solutions; studying the financial, economic, and technological implications of these
alternatives; and analyzing their impact on the environment, land-use and demographic
trends of an area. Transport planners are also entrusted with the task of choosing the right
alternative and preparing a plan for its implementation.
• Transport Economics
This area studies the various economic costs and benefits of building and operating
different transportation facilities. The area focuses on (i) identifying the economic costs
and benefits and their incident sectors, (ii) studying the numerous techniques available and
formulating new techniques to estimate these costs and benefits, (ii) analyzing the
financing and cost recovery aspects of transportation projects, and (iv) suggest economic
ways of solving certain transportation problems.
Additionally, the other important disciplines as described by the National Programme on
Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL) are enumerated below.
• Geometric design
It deals with physical proportioning of other transportation facilities, in contrast
with the structural design of the facilities. The topics include the cross-sectional features,
horizontal alignment, vertical alignment and intersections.
• Environmental impact assessment
The environmental impact assessment attempts in quantifying the environmental
impacts and tries to evolve strategies for the mitigation and reduction of the impact due to
both construction and operation. The primary impacts are fuel consumption, air pollution,
and noise pollution.
• Accident analysis and reduction
One of the silent killers of humanity is transportation. This discipline of
transportation looks at the causes of accidents, from the perspective of humans, roads, and
vehicles and formulates plans for the reduction.
Bridge Engineering
Bridge Engineering deals with the planning and construction of bridges. Bridge planning,
design, and construction is an important function of civil engineering. The bridge design will be
basically determined by the type of bridge, such as the beam bridge or the suspension bridge.
Bridge foundations have to be carefully selected and constructed since they will bear the bridge
and the vehicle loads. A bridge is a structure built to span and provide passage over a river, chasm,
road, or any other physical hurdle. There are several types of bridges. Here are the five (5) most
abundant and common types:
1. Girder bridges
It is the most common and most basic bridge type. In its simplest form, a log across a creek
is an example of a girder bridge.
a) Box Girder: Takes the shape of a box. This has two webs and two flanges.
b) Pi Girders: Named for their likeness to the mathematical symbol for pi.
c) I-beam: Very simple to design and build and works very well in most cases. However, if the
bridge contains any curves, the beams become subject to twisting forces or torque.
2. Arch bridges
Arch bridges are the types of bridges which pose a classic architecture and the oldest after
the girder bridges. Unlike simple girder bridges, arches are well suited to the use of stone. Arches
use a curved structure which provides a high resistance to bending forces. Arches can only be used
where the ground or foundation is solid and stable because unlike girder and truss bridges, both
ends of an arch are fixed in the horizontal direction (i.e. no horizontal movement is allowed in the
bearing). Structurally there are four basic arch type bridges:
a) Hinge-less: This uses no hinges and allows no rotation at the foundations.
b) Two-hinged: The two hinged arch uses hinged bearings which allow rotation. This is
perhaps the most commonly used variation for steel arches.
c) Three hinged: This adds an additional hinge at the top or crown of the arch.
d) Tied arches: The tied arch is a variation on the arch which allows construction even if the
ground is not solid enough to deal with the horizontal forces.
3. Cable stayed bridges
A typical cable stayed bridge is a continuous girder with one or more towers erected above
piers in the middle of the span. From these towers, cables stretch down diagonally (usually to both
sides) and support the girder. Though only a few cables are strong enough to support the entire
bridge, their flexibility makes them weak to a force we rarely consider: the wind. These bridges
can be distinguished by the number of spans, number of towers, girder type, number of cables, etc.
Typical towers used are Single, Double, Portal, and A-shaped towers. Some typical varieties are
Mono, Harp, Fan, and Star arrangements.
CABLE STAYED BRIDGES SUSPENSION BRIDGES
Have cables attached to the tower(s), which Called suspenders attached to the bridge and
are then supported by foundations. main cable which is then attached to the tower
Force transmission passes from the deck, to Forces pass from the deck, to the suspenders,
the stay cables, to the bridge towers, and to the main cable, to the bridge towers, and to
lastly, to the foundations the foundation.
Railway Engineering
A railway is a permanent track composed of a line of parallel metal rails fixed to sleepers,
for transport of passengers and goods in trains. The railways have the advantage over the roadways
that they can carry a large number of passengers and large and heavy loads to long distances.
Types of Rails
Rails can be divided into three types:
1. Double Headed Rails
2. Bull Headed Rails
3. Flat Footed Rails
Meaning An arrangement, where boats and An area next to the shore, where
ships moor and transfer water crafts are anchored for
passengers and cargo, to/from getting safety from stormy
land. weather.
Pipeline Engineering
According to Petropedia, a Pipeline Engineer works on the systems that are used to transport
gas and oil products. They are the individuals who are responsible for the development of pipeline
routes, determining technical specifications like the pipe size and placement. They play a very
significant role in planning the location of depots, stations for maintenance, and other installations
of accessories that help in the project. In addition to that, they are also responsible for taking care
of environmental issues and regulatory limitations that affect the pipelines.
When the installation of pipelines commences, a Pipeline Engineer participates in the quality
control process. The engineer is responsible for every single operation from the beginning till the
end of oil supply. A Pipeline Engineer carries out the inspection of installations, perform tests and
also checks the components that are against the given plans and specifications. The engineer is
required to develop creative solutions immediately whenever a problem arises during the
development process even when under pressure to avoid costly delays.
Pipeline engineers are responsible for the design, construction, operation, quality control,
and maintenance of pipelines and pipeline transportation systems. Pipeline engineers can have a
variety of engineering-related backgrounds, including civil engineering, mechanical engineering,
structural engineering, materials engineering and chemical engineering.
What is a Pipeline?
Pipelines are pipes, usually underground, that transport and distribute fluids. When
discussing pipelines in an energy context, the fluids are usually either oil products or natural gas.
If hydrogen fuel gets extensively developed, pipelines will be needed to transport this secondary
fuel. Outside of an energy context, pipelines transport other fluids like water. These lines vary in
diameter depending on their use, and are generally located underground. There are two major types
of pipelines, liquids pipelines and natural gas pipelines. Liquid pipelines transport crude oil or
natural gas in liquid form to refineries where they undergo distillation and other production
processes. Natural gas pipelines are used solely for the transport of natural gas to processing plants
and are used for distribution.
Environmental Concerns
Although they are a necessary part of the use and transportation of assorted petroleum
products, there are environmental concerns with the construction and operation of pipelines that
vary depending on how and where the pipelines are being built. Some of the concerns include:
a) Reduction of air quality as a result of dust production during construction and emissions
due to the combustion of fossil fuels used for construction equipment.
b) Increased noise pollution as a result of construction and pumping stations.
c) Soil erosion and contamination from construction and any leaks.
d) Loss of plant life as a result of construction, surface disturbances, and changes in water
flows.
e) Water resource disturbances in terms of quantity and quality as a result of erosion,
herbicides, and leaks.
Known Pipeline Engineers’ works in the Philippines
Malampaya Gas Field Project
The Malampaya field is located 80km off the Coast of Palawan Island, in the Republic of
the Philippines. This project was developed and is being operated by Shell Philippines Exploration
on behalf of the joint venture partners. Philippine Department of Energy led the development.
FPIC Black Oil Pipeline
An operating crude oil pipeline in the Philippines. The pipeline was temporarily shut down
from November 2010 to June 2011 after FPIC's adjacent white oil pipeline leaked. Its operator is
the First Philippine Industrial Corporation (FPIC) with current capacity of100,000 barrels per day
and length of 65 mi / 105 km.
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