1

Traffic Flow Characteristics

2


Traffic Streams
Traffic streams are made up of individual drivers and
vehicles, interacting in unique ways with each other and
with elements of the roadway and general environment.
Because the judgments and abilities of individual drivers
come into play, vehicles in the traffic stream do not and
cannot behave uniformly.
Further, no two similar traffic streams will behave alike,
even under equivalent circumstances, as driver behavior
varies with local characteristics and driving habits.
Traffic streams, however, can be described in quantitative
terms with the use of some key parameters like volume,
speed and density.
3


Traffic Streams
Traffic facilities are broadly separated into two principal
categories:
1. Uninterrupted flow facilities, and
2. Interrupted flow facilities
Uninterrupted Flow Facilities are those on which no
external factors cause periodic interruption to the traffic
stream. Example: Freeway
Interrupted Flow Facilities are those having external
devices that periodically interrupt traffic flow. Example:
Urban Roadways.
The principal devices creating interrupted flow are
primarily traffic signal and also STOP and YIELD signs,
etc.
4


Traffic Streams
Uninterrupted and Interrupted Flow are terms
that describe the facility and not the quality of
flow.

A congested freeway where traffic is almost
coming to a halt is still classified as
uninterrupted flow facility, because the reason
for congestion is internal to the traffic stream.

A well-timed signaling system on an arterial may
result in almost uninterrupted traffic flow, but
still is classified as interrupted flow facility.
5


Traffic Stream Parameters
Traffic Stream Parameters fall into two
broad categories:
Macroscopic parameters, and
Microscopic parameters.
Macroscopic parameters characterize the
traffic stream as a whole
Microscopic parameters characterize the
behavior of individual vehicles in the
traffic stream with respect to each other.
6


Traffic Stream Parameters
Macroscopic flow
traffic in the aggregate.
overall speeds, traffic flows, densities,
etc.
Microscopic flow
traffic at the level of the individual vehicle
observe the particular behaviors of drivers,
and of individual vehicles in the traffic
stream.
vehicle headways & lane-changing behavior
(merging, diverging, weaving, passing, etc.)
critical @ microscopic level.
7


Traffic Stream Parameters
A traffic stream may be described
macroscopically by three parameters:

1. Volume or Rate of Flow
2. Speed
3. Density
8


Traffic Stream Parameters
Volume and Flow

Volume is defined as the number of vehicles
that pass a point on a highway, or a given lane
or direction of a highway, during a specified
time interval.
Usually expressed as vehicles per unit time, for
example, vehicles per hour or vph.
Rate of Flow is the equivalent hourly rate at
which vehicles pass a point on a highway lane
during a time period less than 1 hour.
9


Traffic Stream Parameters
Volume and Rate of Flow are two
different measures.
Volume is the actual number of vehicles
observed or predicted to be passing a
point during a given time interval.
Rate of flow represents the number of
vehicles passing a point during a time
interval less than 1 hour, but expressed
as an equivalent hourly rate.
10


Traffic Stream Parameters
A volume of 200 vehicles observed
in a 10-minute period implies a rate
of flow of (200 x 60)/10 = 1200
veh/hr.
Note that 1200 vehicles do not pass
the point of observation during the
study hour, but they do pass the
point at that rate for 10 minutes.
11


Traffic Stream Parameters
Capacity : The maximum number of
vehicles per unit time that a particular
transportation facility may accommodate
(veh/h).
12


Traffic Stream Parameters
Daily Volumes and Their Use

A common time interval for volumes is a
day.
Daily volumes are frequently used as the
basis for highway planning and general
observations of trends.
Traffic volume projections are often
based on measured daily volumes.
13


Traffic Stream Parameters
Daily Volumes and Their Use (Contd..)

There are four commonly used daily volume parameters:

1. Average Annual Daily Traffic (AADT): is the average 24-hr
traffic volume at a given location over a full 365-day year.
2. Average Annual Weekday Traffic (AAWT): is the average
24-hr traffic volume occurring on weekdays over a full
365-day year.
3. Average Daily Traffic (ADT): is an average 24-hr volume
at a given location for some period of time less than a
year, but more than one day.
4. Average Weekday Traffic (AWT): is an average 24-hr
traffic volume occurring on weekdays for some period less
than one year.
14


Traffic Stream Parameters

15


Traffic Stream Parameters
Hourly Volumes and Their Use

While daily volumes are useful in highway planning, they
cannot be used alone for design or operational analysis
purposes.
Traffic volume varies considerably during the course of a
24-hr day.
The single hour of the day that has the highest hourly
volume is referred to as the peak hour.
Traffic volume within this hour is of greatest interest to
traffic engineers in design or operational analysis.
16


Traffic Stream Parameters
Sub-hourly Volumes and Rates of Flow

The variation within a given hour is also of considerable
interest for traffic design and analysis.
The quality of traffic flow is often related to short-term
fluctuations in traffic demand.
A facility may have capacity adequate to serve the peak-
hour demand, but short-term peaks of flow within the
peak hour may exceed capacity, thereby creating a
breakdown.
17


Traffic Stream Parameters
Sub-hourly Volumes and Rates of Flow

18


Traffic Stream Parameters
Sub-hourly Volumes and Rates of Flow
(contd..)

The relationship between hourly volume and the
maximum rate of flow within the hour is defined
by the Peak Hour Factor (PHF).



where, V = hourly volume, and V
15
= maximum 15-
minute volume within the hour.
15
4 flow of rate maximum
volume hourly
V
V
PHF

= =
19


Traffic Stream Parameters
Sub-hourly Volumes and Rates of Flow (contd..)

The maximum value of PHF is 1.00, which occurs when
the volume in each 15-min period is equal.
The minimum value is 0.25, which occurs when the entire
hourly volume occurs in one 15-min interval.
The normal range of values is between 0.70 and 0.98,
with lower values signifying a greater degree of variation
in flow during the peak hour.
20


Traffic Stream Parameters
Speed
Speed is the second principal parameter describing the
state of a given traffic stream.
In a moving traffic stream, each vehicle travels at a
different speed.
Thus, the traffic stream does not have a single
characteristic speed but rather a distribution of individual
vehicle speeds.
From the distribution of vehicle speeds, a number of
average or typical values may be used to characterize
the traffic stream as a whole.
21


Traffic Stream Parameters
Speed (contd..)

Average or mean speeds can be computed in two different ways:
1. Time Mean Speed (TMS) is defined as the average speed of all
vehicles passing a point on a highway over some specified time
period.
2. Space Mean Speed (SMS) is defined as the average speed of all
vehicles occupying a given section of a highway over some
specified time period.
Time mean speed is a point measure, while space mean speed is
a measure relating to a length of highway or lane.
22


Traffic Stream Parameters
Speed (contd..)



where, d is the distance traversed, n is the
number of travel times observed and t
i
is the
travel time for i-th vehicle.

=
i
t
nd
n
i
t
d
SMS and
n
i
t
d
TMS
23


Traffic Stream Parameters
Speed (contd..)


24


Traffic Stream Parameters
Relationship between time mean speed
and space mean speed
Time mean speed is greater to equal to space
mean speed
The two speeds have the following
relationship:


s
s
s t
v
v v
2
o
+ =
25


Traffic Stream Parameters
Speed (contd..)

Average Travel Speed and Average Running Speed

They are two forms of space mean speed.
The Average Travel Speed computation uses
total average travel time while Average Running
Speed computation uses the average running
time.
Running time is defined as the time during
which the vehicle is in motion while traversing a
given highway segment.
26


Traffic Stream Parameters
Speed (contd..)

Example
Consider the case of a 1-mile section of a roadway. On the
average, it takes a vehicle 3 minutes to traverse the section, 1
minute of which is stopped time experienced at signalized
intersections.



mph mph Speed Running Average
mph mph Speed Travel Average
30
60
2
1
20
60
3
1
= =
= =
27


Traffic Stream Parameters
Speed (contd..)

Operating Speed is defined as the maximum safe speed at
which a vehicle can be conducted in a given traffic
stream, without exceeding the design speed of the
highway segment.
Operating speed is difficult to measure. It requires that a
test car be driven through the traffic stream in a manner
consistent with the definition.
As maximum safe speed is a judgmental matter,
consistent measurements among test-car drivers are not
often achieved.


28


Traffic Stream Parameters
Density
Density, the third measure of traffic
stream conditions, is defined as the
number of vehicles occupying a
given length of highway or lane.
Usually expressed as vehicles per
mile (vpm) or vehicles per mile per
lane (vpmpl).
Density is difficult to measure
directly, as an elevated point is
required.
29


Traffic Stream Parameters
Density (contd)

It can, however, be computed from speed
and flow rate using the relationship as
follows:



Where, q = flow rate (vph)
v
s
= space mean speed (mph), and
k = density (vpm).
k v q
s
30


Traffic Stream Parameters
Spacing and Time Headway

Spacing and Time Headway are microscopic measures,
because they apply to individual pairs of vehicles within
the traffic stream.
Spacing is defined as the distance between successive
vehicles in a traffic lane, measured from some common
reference point on the vehicles, such as the front bumpers
or front wheels.
Spacing @ given point
31


Traffic Stream Parameters
Spacing and Time Headway

Time Headway is the time between successive vehicles
as they pass a point along the lane, also measured
between common reference points on the vehicles.
Particular
location
32


Traffic Stream Parameters
Clearance (ft) =
(spacing) (average
vehicle length)

Gap (sec) =
(headway) (time
equivalence of the
average vehicle
length)
33


Traffic Stream Parameters
Spacing and Time Headway (contd..)

Average values of Spacing and Time Headway are
related to the macroscopic parameters as follows:



where, k = density (vpmpl), v
s
= average speed
(ft/sec), q = rate of flow (vphpl), d
a
= average spacing
(ft), and h
a
= average time headway (sec).
a
h
a
d
s
v
a
h
q
a
d
k = = = ;
3600
;
5280
34


Traffic Stream Parameters
Lane occupancy: measure used in freeway
surveillance.
Ratio of the time that vehicles are present at a
detection station in a traffic lane compared to the
observation time.

35


Traffic Stream Parameters
Lane occupancy

T
t
LO

= =
0
n time observatio total
occupied is detector vehicle time total
Time that the vehicle used to travel L+C:
s
v
C L
t
+
=
0
s
v
36


Traffic Stream Parameters
Lane occupancy
Assume k vehicles are evenly spread out on 1 mile
highway at speed v
s
mile/hr


Total time needed to have all vehicles pass the
detector is: (hrs)
Therefore:

s
v T 1 =
ile) (vehicle/m
) (
/
) (
C L
LO
k
v
v
k C L
T
t
LO
s
s
+

+
= =

5280
1
5280
0
37
Speed, Flow and Density
Relationship
Assume
We have
Bk A v =
2
Bk Ak kv q = =
( )
B
v
v
B
A
B
v A v
q
2
=

=
38
Properties of speed-density
curve
The product of the x-y coordinates of
the point P is the flow associated with
P
Max flow occurs at:
B
A
k Bk A
k
q
2
0 2 0 = = =
c
c
39
Properties of speed-flow
curve
The slope of the line connecting any point on the
curve and the origin is the inverse of the density
Max flow occurred at:
2
0
A
v
v
q
= =
c
c
40
Properties of flow-density
curve
The slope of the line connecting any point on the
curve and the origin is the space mean speed
41
General properties for any
traffic flow model
Need to satisfy four boundary
conditions
Flow is zero at zero density
Flow is zero at maximum density
Mean free-flow speed occurs at zero density
Flow-density curves are convex (i.e. there is a
point of max flow)
42
Connections between speed,
density and flow
A: almost zero density, free-flow speed, very low
volume
B: increased density, reduced speed, increased volume
C: increased density, reduced speed, max volume
D: jam density, min speed (crawling), very low volume
43


Traffic Stream Parameters

Since a given flow may occur under two
completely different operating conditions (stable
and unstable), volume or rate of flow cannot be
used as a measure describing the operational
quality of the traffic stream.

Speed and density, however, are good measures
of the quality of operations, as both uniquely
describe the state of the traffic stream.
44
Macroscopic Models of Traffic Flow


The two most commonly used macroscopic
models are:

The Greenshields Model

The Greenberg Model

45
Macroscopic Models of Traffic Flow
Greenshields Model
The general model connecting speed,
flow, and density discussed so far is a
linear model proposed by Greenshield in
1935.
He suggested that the speed and
density were linearly related as follows:
k
k
v
v v
j
f
f s
|
|
.
|

\
|
=
46
Macroscopic Models of Traffic Flow
Greenshields Model
It can be shown that:
The maximum flow (i.e., capacity) occurs when the speed
of the traffic stream is half of the free-flow speed:



The maximum flow (i.e., capacity) occurs when the density
is half of the jam density:


The maximum flow, q
max
:
2
max
f
q q s
v
v =
=
2
max
j
q q
k
k =
=
4 2 2
max
j f j f
k v k v
q =
|
|
.
|

\
|
|
|
.
|

\
|
=
47
Macroscopic Models of Traffic Flow
Greenbergs Model
Greenberg developed a model in 1959,
taking speed, flow and density
measurements in the Lincoln Tunnel.
Used a fluid-flow analogy concept.
The model is of the following form:
|
|
.
|

\
|
=
k
k
C v
j
s
ln
48
Macroscopic Models of Traffic Flow
Greenbergs Model
It can be shown that:
The maximum flow occurs when speed


The maximum flow occurs when density (k) is
related with jam density (k
j
) as follows:


Then, the maximum flow (q
max
) is the product of
the density (k) and speed (v
s
) at maximum flow.
C v
s
=
1 ln =
|
|
.
|

\
|
k
k
j
49
Macroscopic Models of Traffic Flow
Limitations of the Models

The Greeshields Model can be used for light or
heavy traffic conditions.

The Greenberg Model is useful only for heavy
traffic conditions.