CH 77

Chapter 7-Highway Capacity %Definition of capacity by HCM 2000
Definitions “The capacity of the facility is the maximum hourly rate at which persons or vehicles reasonably
Volume – number of vehicles (persons) passing a point during a specified time period which is usually one can be expected to traverse a point or a uniform section of a lane or roadway during a given time
period under prevailing roadway, traffic, and control conditions”
hour.
%HCM [Highway Capacity Manual] – It is a standard for capacity analysis
Capacity – maximum and repeatable volume of vehicles/travelers that can traverse a point or short
segment during a specified time period. For most cases, the rate used is for the peak 15 minutes of the peak %Highway capacity analysis serves three general purposes
hour. ÈTransportation planning: capacity of the network
Demand – number of vehicles (persons) that desire to travel past a point during a specified period also
ÈHighway design: to select the highway type and to determine dimensions
usually one hour. It is a volume not influenced by highway capacity
ÈTraffic operational analysis: for identifying bottleneck locations and identifying improvements
%Theoretically, actual volume can never be observed at levels higher than the true capacity of the section. %The two-lane, two-way rural highway is the only type of highway link on which traffic in one direction
has a distinct operational impact on traffic in the other direction.
Capacity Demand %Rural two-lane highways serve two primary functions in the nation’s highway network:
Traffic Intensity
È Mobility
È Accessibility
%Many two-lane rural highways, however, serve low volumes, sometimes under 100 veh/day.
Volume
Congestion %There are two distinct classes of rural two-lane, two-way highways:
Class I: These are highways on which motorists expect to travel at relatively high speeds, including
major intercity routes, primary arterials, and daily commuter routes.
È Serve primarily for mobility needs.
1
Time 2
Generally Level of Service (LOS):- is Chief measure of “quality of service”

Class II: These are highways on which motorists do not necessarily expect to travel at high
ÈDescribes operational conditions within a traffic stream.
speeds, including access routes, scenic and recreational routes that are not primary ÈDoes not include safety
arterials, and routes through rugged terrain. ÈDifferent measures for different facilities
È Serve primarily for accessibility needs. %Six measures (A through F)
%Freeway LOS % LOS A
%The HCM 2000 defines level of service as follows
ÈBased on traffic density È Free-flow operation
%“level of service (LOS) is a quality measure describing operational conditions within a traffic stream,
generally in terms of such service measures as speed and travel time, and comfort and convenience.” % LOS B
%“A level of service is a letter designation that describes a range of operating conditions on a particular type È Reasonably free flow
of facility.”(ranges from A (highest) to F (lowest)) È Ability to maneuver is only slightly restricted
%LOS is a convenient way to describe the general quality of operation on a facility with defined traffic road È Effects of minor incidents still easily absorbed
way control conditions
% LOS C % LOS E
%Level of service for two-lane rural highways is defined in terms of two measures of effectiveness: È Speeds at or near FFS È Operation near or at capacity
È Average travel speed (ATS) È Freedom to maneuver is noticeably restricted È No usable gaps in the traffic
È Percent time spent following (PTSF) È Queues may form behind any significant stream
blockage. È Operations extremely volatile
%Average travel speed (ATS) is the average speed of all vehicles traversing the defined analysis
% LOS D È Any disruption causes queuing
segment for the specified time period, which are usually the peak 15-minutes of a peak hour È Speeds decline slightly with increasing flows
È Density increases more quickly % LOS F
%Percent time spent following (PTSF) is the aggregate percentage of time that all drivers spend in
È Freedom to maneuver is more noticeably È Breakdown in flow
queues, unable to pass, with the speed restricted by the queue leader. limited È Queues form behind breakdown
È Minor incidents create queuing points
3 4
È Demand > capacity

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Chapter 7-Highway Capacity %Definition of capacity by HCM 2000

Generally Level of Service (LOS):- is Chief measure of “quality of service”

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