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Traffic Flow Characteristics I

This document provides an overview of key traffic flow characteristics including speed, volume, density, spacing, headway, lane occupancy, clearance, and gap. It defines these terms and shows examples of how to calculate them using data from time-space diagrams and spot speed studies. Formulas are provided for calculating time mean speed, space mean speed, volume, density, average headway, and relationships between these variables.

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160 views

Traffic Flow Characteristics I

This document provides an overview of key traffic flow characteristics including speed, volume, density, spacing, headway, lane occupancy, clearance, and gap. It defines these terms and shows examples of how to calculate them using data from time-space diagrams and spot speed studies. Formulas are provided for calculating time mean speed, space mean speed, volume, density, average headway, and relationships between these variables.

Uploaded by

Kwaku Solo
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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CEECE

370468
Transportation Engineering

Traffic Flow
Characteristics

8 Feb 2009

Jessica Guo
CharlesProfessor
Adams

Learning Objectives
To define and apply basic measures of
traffic flow, including;

Speed
Volume
Density
Spacing and Headway
Lane occupancy
Clearance and gap

Traffic Flow
Complex: between vehicles and drivers,
among vehicles
Stochastic: variability in outcome, cannot
predict with certainty
Theories and models
Macroscopic: aggregate, steady state
Microscopic: disaggregate, dynamics
Human factor: driver behavior

Speed (v)
Rate of motion
Individual speed

Average speed
Time mean speed
Arithmetic mean

Space mean speed


Harmonic mean

vt

L
L
, vavg
T
T

n
L

nL
vs

ti ti
i n i

vt vs

Individual Speed
(1)

Time of
Location (ft) Speed
Passing (sec) 600
700 (ft/sec)

700 600
v1
50 ft/sec
2.0 0.0
50 * 3600 / 5280 34.09 (mi/hr or mph)

Vehicle

Spot
Speed

0.0

2.0

50.0

4.4

6.7

45.0

6.0

8.0

50.0

11.4

14.3

35.0

15.0

17.5

40.0

17.5

20.0

40.0

21.1

23.3

45.0

23.3

25.0

60.0

Time Mean Speed

Mile
post

Observation Period

vt

50 45 50 35 40 40 45 60
45.6 (ft/sec)
8

Observation Distance

Space Mean Speed

Observation Period

100 * 8
vs
44 .2(ft/sec) 30 .1(mi/hr)
2 2.3 2 2.9 2.5 2.5 2.2 1.7

Volume (q)
Number of vehicles passing a point during
a given time interval
Typically quantified by Rate of Flow
(vehicles per hour)
Time-Space Plot
1000
900
800

Distance (ft)

700

600
500
400
300
200
100
0
0

10

15

Time (sec)

20

25

8
1152 (veh/hr or vph)
25 / 3600

Volume (q)

Density (k)
Number of vehicles occupying a given
length of roadway
Typically measured as vehicles per mile
(vpm),
or vehicles per
mile per lane
(vpmpl)

Density (k)

Density (k)

q(veh/hr) v(mi/hr) * k(veh/mi)


1152(veh/hr) 30.1(mi/hr) * k
k 1152 / 30.1 38.22(veh/mi)

Spacing (s)
Front bumper to front bumper distance
between successive vehicles

S2-3

S1-2

Headway (h)
Time between successive vehicles passing
a fixed point

T=3sec
T=0
sec
h1-2=3sec

Spacing and Headway

spacing

headway

Spacing and Headway


What are the individual headways and the average headway measured at
location A during the 25 sec period?

Spacing and Headway


What are the individual headways and the average headway measured at
location A during the 25 sec period?

Time of
Location (ft)
Passing (sec) 600
700

Vehicle

0.0

2.0

4.4

6.7

6.0

8.0

11.4

14.3

15.0

17.5

17.5

20.0

21.1

23.3

23.3

25.0

h1-2
h2-3

Lane Occupancy
Ratio of roadway occupied by vehicles

L2

L3

LO

L1

Clearance (c) and Gap (g)


Front bumper to back bumper distance
and time
Clearance (ft) or Gap (sec)

g avg havg

Lavg
vavg

cavg g avg * vavg

Spacing (ft) or headway (sec)

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