Lecture On Traffic Engineering Chapter III

Traffic Engineering
Chapter III
Traffic stream Characteristics
Chapter III Traffic Stream Characteristics
3.1 Fundamental diagram of traffic flow
The fundamental diagram of traffic flow is a
diagram that gives a relation between the traffic
flux (vehicles/hour) and the traffic density
(vehicles/km). A macroscopic traffic model
involving traffic flux, traffic density and velocity
forms the basis of the fundamental diagram. It
can be used to predict the capability of a road
system, or its behaviour when applying inflow
regulation or speed limits.
Cont’d
Speed-density relationship
In a situation where only one car is travelling along a stretch of
highway, densities (in vehicles per kilometre) will by definition be
near to zero and the speed at which the car can be driven is
determined solely by the geometric design and layout of the road;
such a speed is termed free-flow speed as it is in no way hindered
by the presence of other vehicles on the highway. As more vehicles
use the section of highway, the density of the flow will increase
and their speed will decrease from their maximum free-flow value
(uf) as they are increasingly more inhibited by the driving
manoeuvres of others. If traffic volumes continue to increase, a
point is reached where traffic will be brought to a stop, thus speeds
will equal zero (u = 0), with the density at its maximum point as
cars are jammed bumper to bumper (termed jam density, kj).
Cont’d
Thus, the limiting values of the relationship between
speed and density are as follows
Various attempts have been made to describe the

relationship between speed and density between these
two limiting points. Greenshields (1934) proposed the
simplest representation between the two variables,
assuming a linear relationship between the two. In
mathematical terms, this linear relationship gives rise to
the following equation:
Cont’d
Cont’d
This assumption of linearity allows a direct mathematical

linkage to be formed between the speed, flow and density of a
stream of traffic.
This linear relationship between speed and density, put
forward by Greenshields (1934), leads to a set of
mathematical relationships between speed, flow and density
as outlined in the next section. The general form of
Greenshields’ speed-density relationship can be expressed as:
u = c1 + c2k
Cont’d
However, certain researchers (Pipes, 1967; Greenberg,

1959) have observed non-linear behaviour at each
extreme of the speed-density relationship, i.e. near the
free-flow and jam density conditions. Underwood (1961)
proposed an exponential relationship of the following
form:
Using this expression, the boundary conditions are:

When density equals zero, the free flow speed equals c1
When speed equals zero, jam density equals infinity.
Cont’d
Flow-density relationship
Combining Equations the following direct relationship
between flow and density is derived:
Cont’d
This is a parabolic relationship and is illustrated below.

In order to establish the density at which maximum
flow occurs, Equation above is differentiated
an d set equal to zero as follows:
Cont’d
km, the density at maximum flow, is thus equal to half

the jam density, kj. Its location is shown in fig below
Illustration of flow density relationship

Cont’d
Speed-flow relationship
In order to derive this relationship, the above Equation
is rearranged as:
Cont’d
In order to find the speed at maximum flow, tne above
Equation is differentiated and put equal to zero:
Cont’d
Um, the speed at maximum flow, is thus equal to half
the free-flow speed, Uf. Its location is shown in the
above figure.
Combining the above equations, the following
expression for maximum flow is derived:
Cont’d
Speed-flow relationship
In order to derive this relationship, is rearranged as:
By combining this formula with the above Equation the

following relationship is derived:
Cont’d
3.2 Fundamental Relations of Traffic Flow

3.2.1 Overview
Speed is one of the basic parameters of traffic flow and
time mean speed and space mean speed are the two
representations of speed. Time mean speed and space
mean speed and the relationship between them will
be discussed in detail in this chapter. The relationship
between the fundamental parameters of traffic flow
will also be derived. In addition, this relationship can
be represented in graphical form resulting in the
fundamental diagrams of traffic flow
Cont’d
3.2.2 Time mean speed (Vt)

As noted earlier, time mean speed is the average of all
vehicles passing a point over duration of time. It is the
simple average of spot speed. Time mean speed Vt is
given by,
Where qi is the number of vehicles having speed vi, and

n is the number of such speed categories.
Cont’d
Where Vi is the spot speed of ith vehicle, and n is the
number of observations. In many speed studies, speeds
are represented in the form of frequency table. Then
the time mean speed is given by,
Cont’d
3.2.3 Space mean speed (Vs)

The space mean speed also averages the spot speed,
but spatial weightage is given instead of temporal. This
is derived as below. Consider unit length of a road, and
let vi is the spot speed
Cont’d
This is simply the harmonic mean of the spot speed. If the spot speeds are expressed as a
frequency table, then,
Where qi vehicle will have vi speed and ni is the number of such observations
Cont’d
Numerical Example
The results of a speed study are given in the form of a
frequency distribution table. Find the time mean speed
and space mean speed.
Cont’d
Cont’d
duration of time. For this reason, in many fundamental traffic equations, space mean
speed is preferred over time mean speed.
Cont’d
Figure 2:1: Illustration of relation between time mean

speed and space mean speed
Level of Service
Types of Analysis
There are three types of analysis that can be conducted
for basic freeway sections and multilane highways:
• Operational analysis
• Service flow rate and service volume analysis
• Design analysis
All forms of analysis require the determination of the
free-flow speed of the facility in question. Field
measurement and estimation techniques for making this
determination are discussed in a later section.
Level of Service
1. Operational Analysis
The most common form of analysis is operational
analysis. In this form of analysis, all traffic, roadway, and
control conditions are defined for an existing or
projected highway section, and the expected level of
service and operating parameters are determined.
The basic approach is to convert the existing or forecast
demand volumes to an equivalent flow rate under ideal
conditions:
Cont’d
Where:
VP = demand flow rate under equivalent ideal conditions,
pc/h/ln
PHF = peak-hour factor
N = number of lanes (in one direction) on the facility
fHv = adjustment factor for presence of heavy vehicles
fP = adjustment factor for presence of occasional or non-
familiar users of a facility
This result is used to enter either the standard speed-flow
curves of Figure 3.2 (freeways) or 3.3 (multilane highways).
Using the appropriate free-flow speed, the curves may be
entered on the x-axis with the demand flow rate, VP, to
determine the level of service and the expected average speed.
Cont’d
2. Service Flow Rate and Service Volume Analysis

It is often useful to determine the service flow rates and
service volumes for the various levels of service under
prevailing conditions. The service flow rate for level of
service i is the maximum flow rate that can be maintained
under prevailing condition. Prevailing conditions are usually
not the same as the ideal conditions, and therefore the
service flow rate must be obtained by adjusting the
maximum service flow MSFi to reflect the number of lanes
and the prevailing conditions. The maximum service flow
rate at level of service i (MSFi) is the maximum flow that a
section of the freeway can maintain at level of service i under
ideal conditions. Ideal conditions are defined as follows:
Cont’d
1. Lanes are 12ft (3.65m) or wider.

2. Lateral obstructions are no closer than 6 ft (1.83m) to
the edge of the travel lane.
3. Only passenger cars are in the traffic stream.
4. Driver population is dominated by regular and
familiar users of the facility.
The maximum service flow rate is determined as the
product of the capacity under ideal conditions and the
maximum volume-to-capacity ratio for the level of
service i.
Cont’d
Where
MSFi = maximum service flow rate per hour per lane
(pc/hr/ln) under ideal conditions for level of service I
(V/C) i = maximum volume-to-capacity ratio for level of
service i
Cj = capacity under ideal conditions for the freeway
segment having design speed j (2200 pc/hr/ln for four-
lane freeway segments and 2300 pc/hr/ln for six or more
lane freeway segments)
The MSFi is multiplied by adjustment factors that reflect
deviations from ideal conditions. And so that the service
flow rate is calculated.
Cont’d
Substituting for MSFi
Where SFi = service flow rate for level of service i under prevailing traffic and
roadway conditions for N lanes in one direction (vph)
MSFi = maximum service flow rate per hour per lane under ideal conditions for
level of service i
fW = factor to adjust for the effect of restricted lane widths and/or lateral
clearance
fHV = factor to adjust for the combined effect of heavy vehicles in the traffic
stream.
fp = factor to adjust for the effect of recreational or unfamiliar driver populations
N = number of lanes in one direction of the freeway
Cont’d
Service flow rates are stated in terms of peak flows

within the peak hour, usually for a 15-minute analysis
period. It is often convenient to convert service flow
rates to service volumes over the full peak hour. This is
done using the peak-hour factor:
Where: SVi = Service volume over a full peak hour for

level of service "i"
SFi, PHF as previously defined
Cont’d
Multilane Highways
The free-flow speed for a multilane highway may be
𝐅𝐅𝐒=𝐁𝐅𝐅𝐒−𝐟𝐋𝐖−𝐟𝐋𝐂−𝐟𝐌−𝐟𝐀
estimated as:
Where: FFS = free-flow speed of the multilane highway,

mi/h; BFFS =base free-flow speed; fLW = adjustment for
lane width, mi/h; fLC = adjustment for lateral clearance,
mi/h; fM = adjustment for type of median, mi/h; fA =
adjustment for access points, mi/h
Cont’d
A base free-flow speed of 60 mi/h may be used for
rural and suburban multilane highways, if no field data
is available. It may also be estimated using the posted
speed limit. The base free-flow speed is approximately
7 mi/h higher than the posted speed limit, for speed
limits of 40 and 45 mi/h. and for speed limits of 50 and
55 mi/h, the base free-flow speed is approximately 5
mi/h higher than the limit.
Lane Width Adjustment The base lane width for
multilane highways is 12 ft, as was the case for
freeways. For narrower lanes, the free-flow speed is
reduced by the values shown in Table 3.13.
Cont’d
Table 3.13: Adjustment to Free-Flow Speed for Lane

Width on a Multilane Highway
Cont’d
Lateral Clearance Adjustment For multilane highways, this

adjustment is based on the total lateral clearance, which is the
sum of the lateral clearances on the right side of the roadway
and on the left (median) side of the roadway. While this seems
like a simple concept, there are some details that must be
observed:
Table 3.14: Adjustment to Total Lateral Clearance on a
Multilane Highway
Cont’d
Median-Type Adjustment The median-type adjustment

is shown in Table 4.16. A reduction of 1.6 mi/h is made
for undivided configurations, while divided multilane
highways, or multilane highways with two-way left-turn
lanes, represent base conditions.
Table 3.15: Adjustment to Free-Flow Speed for Median
Type on Multilane Highways
Cont’d
Access-Point Density Adjustment A critical adjustment
to base free-flow speed is related to access-point
density. Access-point density is the average number of
unsignalized driveways or roadways per mile that
provide access to the multilane highway on the right
side of the roadway (for the subject direction of traffic).
Table 3.16: Adjustment to Free-Flow Speed for Access-Point
Density on a Multilane Highway
Cont’d

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Traffic Engineering

Various attempts have been made to describe the

This assumption of linearity allows a direct mathematical

However, certain researchers (Pipes, 1967; Greenberg,

Using this expression, the boundary conditions are:

This is a parabolic relationship and is illustrated below.

km, the density at maximum flow, is thus equal to half

Illustration of flow density relationship

By combining this formula with the above Equation the

3.2 Fundamental Relations of Traffic Flow

3.2.2 Time mean speed (Vt)

Where qi is the number of vehicles having speed vi, and

3.2.3 Space mean speed (Vs)

Figure 2:1: Illustration of relation between time mean

2. Service Flow Rate and Service Volume Analysis

1. Lanes are 12ft (3.65m) or wider.

Substituting for MSFi

Service flow rates are stated in terms of peak flows

Where: SVi = Service volume over a full peak hour for

Where: FFS = free-flow speed of the multilane highway,

Table 3.13: Adjustment to Free-Flow Speed for Lane

Lateral Clearance Adjustment For multilane highways, this

Median-Type Adjustment The median-type adjustment

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