CIV2282 Transport and Traffic Engineering

2024

Assignment One:
Traffic Flow Fundamentals, Fundamental diagrams and Shockwave Theory

Note that some of the topics covered in this Assignment may not have been covered in
lectures that were held before the assignment is released. Students are welcome to read
the topic notes, text books and other references prior to the topics being covered in
lectures.

 It is worth 20% of the final grade for the unit.

 Number in [ ] beside each question indicate the marks.
 Some marks are allocated for presentation. Assignments may be handwritten or
printed from a word processor such as Microsoft Word. However, printed
assignments are more likely to receive more marks for presentation.
 Take particular care with your diagrams and graphs – they include readable graph
titles, graph legends, axis labels and axis titles, units.
 Note: plot the figures in all questions clearly with reasonable scales. We will deduce
½ mark for each figure for poor presentation (poor scale, no labels, titles, units, etc).
 Questions are worth multiple marks. To get full marks for each question, you need to
 describe what you are doing,
 show your calculations (i.e. formulas and equations) and answers
 Consequential marks are given.
 You should include an assessment cover sheet, with your name and student number.
 Page limit: 30 pages excluding cover sheet and supporting excel documents.
 Late submissions will be penalised 10% for each day.

Assignment 1 Marking distribution

Question Marks Difficulty level
1 10% Easy
2 10% Easy
3 20% Easy (a,b)
Intermediate (c)
4 28% Intermediate
5 32% Intermediate (a,b)
Hard (c-f)
Total 100%

Note: all the numbers can be rounded up to 2 decimal places.

Part 1: Traffic flow fundamentals and fundamental diagrams [40]

Question 1 [10]

The arrival times and spot speeds of 20 vehicles were recorded at a fixed location on a multi-lane road.

Those times and speeds are given in the spreadsheet “Assignment One Question 1.xls” in this unit’s Moodle
site. Note that this spreadsheet requires you to enter your student ID, after which it will generate a custom
data set of 20 times and speeds.

a) What is the average headway between these vehicles (across all lanes)? [2]
CIV2282 Transport and Traffic Engineering -1- Assignment One, Version 2024
b) From the headway above, calculate the volume recorded at the point on the roadway (across all lanes)?
[2]
c) What is the space mean speed (across all lanes)? [2]
d) What is the time mean speed (across all lanes)? [2]
e) What is the average spacing between these vehicles (across all lanes)? [2]

Include the spreadsheet of your data in your assignment submission. Note: you will not receive any mark if
no data is submitted.

Question 2 [10]

The trajectories (time-space diagrams) of a group of vehicles were recorded at a site from a US motorway
(i.e. NGSIM data, see figure 1 below). The data are given in the spreadsheet “Assignment One Question
2.xls” in this unit’s Moodle site. This dataset contains the information of 7 vehicles while the information of
the 8th vehicle is considered missing.

700

600

500
Postition (m)

400

300

200

100

0
790 800 810 820 830 840 850 860 870 880
Time (s)

Figure 1: NGSIM data. Left: data collection site. Right: time-space diagram of 8 vehicles.

a) Calculate the average spacing (i.e. the space headway) of the vehicles at different time steps given
in the excel sheet [2]. Plot these time varying values [1]
b) Calculate the space mean speed at different time steps given in the excel sheet [2]. Plot these time
varying values [1]
c) Calculate the flow at different time steps given in the excel sheet [3]. Plot these time varying values
[1]

Include all the required plots and the spreadsheet in your assignment submission. Note: you will not receive
full mark if no supporting document is submitted.

Question 3 [20]

Data collected at a loop detector (detector 5) of the US 101 motorway (PeMS),

https://dot.ca.gov/programs/traffic-operations/mpr/pems-source, are given in the spreadsheet “Assignment One
Question 3.xls” in this unit’s Moodle site.

CIV2282 Transport and Traffic Engineering -2- Assignment One, Version 2024
 postmile Loop detector

Figure 2: US 101 motorway section. The traffic direction is from left to right.
a) Plot time series of the speed, the volume, and the density [3]. Estimate the time period of congestion if
you observe from the plots, explain why it happens [2]
b) Carefully plot speed-flow, flow-density, and speed-density relationships (as scatter plots) [3]
c) Fundamental diagram estimation: assuming that the speed-density follows a linear relationship (i.e. the
Greenshield’s model)
o Using the above data, estimate the free flow speed, capacity, and jam density of the
fundamental diagram. These values can be rounded up. Note that you need to explain how
you estimate these parameters and the errors of the estimation [6]
o Suppose that a speed limit of 50 km/h is imposed during the peak hours. Plot the new flow-
density and speed-density fundamental diagrams with the speed limit [2]. Calculate the new
capacity and critical density when such speed limit is imposed. These values can be rounded
up [4]

Include all the required plots and the spreadsheet in your assignment submission. Note: you will not receive
full marks if no supporting document is submitted.

Part 2: Shockwave in traffic flow [60]

Question 4- Fixed bottleneck [28]

There are 3500 vehicles per hour entering an arterial road with three lanes in each direction. The
fundamental diagram for this road can be modelled using a triangular flow-density relationship, having a
total capacity (maximum flow) of 4500 vehicles per hour, a critical density of 100 vehicles per kilometre,
and a jam density of 300 vehicles per kilometre (for 3 lanes). Assume that capacity of each lane is
identical.

Initially, the arterial carries traffic quite well until a car illegally parks, blocking one of the three lanes and
forcing traffic to merge into the other two lanes. A traffic queue quickly builds up behind the parked car.

Assuming that the parked car remains and after a period of 30 minutes the arrival flow decreases from
3500 vehicles per hour to 1500 vehicles per hour.

a) Identify traffic states (flow and density) on the above arterial road [6]
b) Calculate the shockwave speeds and plot the shockwaves on the fundamental diagram [6]
c) Plot the time-space diagram and showing the shockwaves in this time-space diagram [6]
d) Sketch some vehicle trajectories on the time-space diagram before and after the bottleneck [4]
e) Calculate the queue of slow-moving vehicles reach in the 45 minutes until the arrival flow decreases
[3]
f) Calculate the time it takes the queue of slow-moving vehicles to dissipate after the arrival flow
decreases [3]

CIV2282 Transport and Traffic Engineering -3- Assignment One, Version 2024
Question 5- Combined moving bottleneck and fixed bottleneck [32]

The volume at a section of a single-lane highway is 1000 veh/h and the speed is 100 km/h in each direction.
A large dump truck joins the traffic stream and travels at a speed of 20 km/h for a length of 1 km along the
road before arriving at a signalised intersection.

Due to the relatively high flow in the opposite direction, it is impossible for any car to pass the truck.
Vehicles behind the truck, therefore, have to travel at the speed of the truck which results in the formation of
congestion (ie moving bottleneck).

When the truck arrives at the intersection, the signal turns red. After 90 seconds, the signal turns green
and the truck begins to move at the same speed of 20 km/hr as before. The truck leaves the highway 1 km
downstream of the intersection. After the truck leaves the highway, traffic will reach the capacity of 2400
veh/h.

Assuming a triangular shape of the flow-density relationship with a jam density of 160 veh/km.

a) Identify traffic states (flow and density) on the above highway [6]
b) Calculate the shockwave speeds and plot the shockwaves on the fundamental diagram [6]
c) Plot the time-space diagram, corresponding to vehicles following the truck when it enters and leaves
the highway, showing the shockwaves in this time-space diagram [6]
d) Sketch some approximate vehicle trajectories on the time-space diagram [4]
e) Determine the length of the queue (in km) behind the truck at the beginning of the red signal
[2]
f) Determine the length of the queue (in km) behind the truck at the end of the red signal [8]

Hint: prove that the first two shockwaves intersect before the signal turns green.

The end.

CIV2282 Transport and Traffic Engineering -4- Assignment One, Version 2024