Planning of urban highway

Transportation
Transportation is a way of moving of people or things from one place to another by any mean.

Urban highway
Urbanization has been one of the dominant contemporary processes as a growing share of the
global population lives in cities. Considering this trend, urban transportation issues are of
foremost importance to support the passengers and freight mobility requirements of large urban
agglomerations. Transportation in urban areas is highly complex because of the modes involved,
the multitude of origins and destinations, and the amount and variety of traffic. Traditionally, the
focus of urban transportation has been on passengers as cities were viewed as locations of utmost
human interactions with intricate traffic patterns linked to commuting, commercial transactions
and leisure/cultural activities. However, cities are also locations of production, consumption and
distribution, activities linked to movements of freight. Conceptually, the urban transport system
is intricately linked with urban form and spatial structure. Urban transit is an important
dimension of mobility, notably in high density areas. To understand the complex relationships
between transportation and land use and to help the urban planning process, several models have
been developed.
The progress of a country is judged by its transportation system. The transportation problem
touches on almost every phase of modern life i.e. Continuing referred to the need to periodically
reevaluate and update a transportation plan. Comprehensive was defined to include the basic 10
elements of a planning.
process for which inventories and analyses were required:
1. Economic factors affecting development.
2. Population.
3. Land use.
4. Transportation facilities including those for mass transportation.
5. Travel patterns.
6. Terminal and transfer facilities.
7. Traffic control features.
8. Zoning ordinances, subdivision regulations, building codes, and the like.
9. Financial resources.
10. Social and community-value factors, such as preservation of open space, parks, and
recreational facilities; preservation of historical sites and buildings; environmental amenities; and
aesthetics.

Highway planning
The process by which new highways and other transportation facilities along with the
improvements to the old facilities are systematically designed, adequately tested, and their
future construction is properly programmed is called Urban Highway Planning.
It can also be defined as:
Activities that:
1. Collect information on performance
2. Identify existing and forecast future system performance levels
3. Identify solutions regarding highways is called Highway Planning.
Highway planners must continually be aware of the heavy responsibilities they bear.
Thus in preparing schemes for a single highway or complicated highway network, care must
always be taken to ensure that:
Project is not treated in isolation
It must be treated as an integral part of whole Transportation System
Entire planning process should be regarded as a definite step in the advancement of
environmental progress and not just as a concrete attempt to relieve congested traffic conditions.

Stages of Highway Development:

Although the names may vary by State, the five basic stages in the highway development process
are: planning, project development (preliminary design), final design, right of way, and
construction.
After construction is completed, ongoing operation and maintenance activities continue
throughout the life of the facility.
Why urban Highway Planning is necessary?
Highway planning is essential due to following reasons
Increase in population
Growth of number of vehicles
Increase in use of vehicles
Density of growth in different areas
Existing state of highway systems

Classification Of Highway Planning?

With respect to region and locality highway planning is divided into following two kinds
Urban Highway Planning
Rural Highway Planning
Here we are restricted our discussion to Urban Highway Planning only.

1. Urban Highway Planning:

The process by which new highways and other transportation facilities along with the
improvements to the old facilities are systematically designed, adequately tested, and their
future construction is properly programmed in urban territories is called Urban Highway
Planning. Now we are going to apply basic elements of transportation upon urban highway
planning

THE PROCESS APPLICATION TO HIGHWAYS

Inventory transportation
Situation Definition facilities
Measure travel patterns
Review Prior studies

Define Objectives-Reduce travel

Time Establish criteria-avg delay
Problem Definition Time Define Constrains
Establish design standards

Consider options-location
Search For Solutions & types
Toll charges

For each option determine

Analysis Of Cost
performance Traffic flow
Impact

Evaluation OF For urban highway project find

Benefits VS. Cost
Alternatives Profitability
Cost-effectiveness

Choice Of Project
Design of highway &
construction plans

Construction
Consider factors involved
Revenue Cost forecast
Site location
Political judgment

Now we discuss in detail steps involved in urban highway planning by first considering the
following flow-chart

1. Inventory Of Existing Travel And Facilities:

This is data-gathering activity in which urban travel characteristics are described for each
defined geographic unit or traffic zone within study area . Inventories and surveys are made to
find traffic volumes, land uses ,origins and destinations of travelers , population ,employment,
and economic activity. Inventories are made of existing transportation facilities both highway
and transit. Capacity ,speed, travel time, and traffic volume are determined .The information
gathered is summarized by geographic areas called traffic analysis zones(TAS).

2.Establishment Of Goals And Objectives:

The urban transportation study is carried out to develop a program of highway and transit
projects that should be completed in the future. Thus a statement of goals ,objectives and
standards is prepared that identifies deficiencies in the existing system ,desired improvements
and what to be achieved by the transportation improvements.

3.Genration Of Alternatives:
In this phase of the urban transportation planning process, the alternatives to be will be
identified. It may also be necessary to analyze the travel effects of different land use plans and
to consider various lifestyle scenarios. The option available to the urban transportation planner
include various technologies, network configurations Vehicles, operating policies and
organizational arrangements.

4.Estimation Of Project Cost And Travel Demand:

This activity in the urban transportation planning process involves two separate tasks.
The first is to ascertain the project cost, and the second is to estimate the amount of traffic
expected in the future. The estimation of facility cost is relatively straight forward whereas the
estimation of future traffic flows is a complex undertaking requiring the use of mathematical
models and computers.

5.Evaluation Of Alternatives:
The purpose of the evaluation process is to identify feasible alternatives In terms of cost
and traffic capacity, to estimate the effects of each alternative in terms of the objectives
expressed, and to assist in identifying those alternatives that will serve the travelling public and
be acceptable to the community.Of particular importance are the environmental assessments
mandated in most transportation studies.

6.Choice Of Project:
Selection of a project will be based on a process that will ultimately involve elected officials and
the public. Quite often, funds to build an urban transportation project may involve a public referendum. In
other cases, a vote by a state legislature may be required before funds are committed. A multiyear
program then will be produced that outlines the projects to be carried out over the next 20 years. With
approval in hand, the project can proceed to the specification and construction phase. Now we focused on
the other states of urban highway

2. Project Development:
After a project has been planned and programmed for implementation, it moves into the project
development phase. At this stage, the environmental analysis intensifies. The level of
environmental review varies widely, depending on the scale and impact of the project. It can
range from a multiyear effort to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (a comprehensive
document that analyzes the potential impact of proposed alternatives) to a modest environmental
review completed in a matter of weeks. Regardless of the level of detail or duration, the product
of the project development process generally includes a description of the location and major
design features of the recommended project that is to be further designed and constructed, while
continually trying to avoid, minimize, and mitigate environmental impact.
The basic steps in this stage include the following:

Refinement of purpose and need

Development of a range of alternatives (including the "no build" and traffic management
system [TMS] options)
Evaluation of alternatives and their impact on the natural and built environments
Development of appropriate mitigation
In general, decisions made at the project development level help to define the major features of
the resulting project through the remainder of the design and construction process. For example,
if the project development process determines that an improvement needs to take the form of a
four lane divided arterial highway, it may be difficult in the design phase to justify providing
only a two lane highway. Similarly, if the project development phase determines that an existing
road cannot be rehabilitated at a reasonable cost to provide the necessary capacity, then it may be
difficult to justify keeping the existing road without investing in the cost of a totally new
structure.
 3. Final Design:
After a preferred alternative has been selected and the project description agreed upon as stated
in the environmental document, a project can move into the final design stage. The product of
this stage is a complete set of plans, specifications, and estimates (PS&Es) of required quantities
of materials ready for the solicitation of construction bids and subsequent construction.
Depending on the scale and complexity of the project, the final design process may take from a
few months to several years.
The need to employ imagination, ingenuity, and flexibility comes into play at this stage, within
the general parameters established during planning and project development. Designers need to
be aware of design related commitments made during project planning and project development,
as well as proposed mitigation. They also need to be cognizant of the ability to make minor
changes to the original concept developed during the planning phase that can result in a "better"
final product.
The interests and involvement of affected stakeholders are critical to making design decisions
during this phase, as well. Many of the same techniques employed during earlier phases of the
project development process to facilitate public participation can also be used during the design
phase.

4. Right Of way, Construction and Maintenance:

Once the final designs have been prepared and needed right of way is purchased, construction
bid packages are made available, a contractor is selected, and construction is initiated. During the
right of way acquisition and construction stages, minor adjustments in the design may be
necessary; therefore, there should be continuous involvement of the design team throughout
these stages. Construction may be simple or complex and may require a few months to several
years. Once construction has been completed, the facility is ready to begin its normal sequence
of operations and maintenance.
Even after the completion of construction, the character of a road can be changed by
inappropriate maintenance actions. For example, the replacement of sections of guardrail
damaged or destroyed in crashes commonly utilizes whatever spare guardrail sections may be
available to the local highway maintenance personnel at the time. The maintenance personnel
may not be aware of the use of a special guardrail design to define the "character" of the

highway. When special design treatments are used, ongoing operation and maintenance
procedures acknowledging these unusual needs should be developed.
 Table summarizes the five basic stages in highway planning and development.
Table:2 Basic Stages in Highway Planning

State DOTs, MPOs, and local governments identify

transportation needs and program project to be built
Planning
planning within financial constraints.

The transportation project is more clearly defined.

Project Alternative locations and design features are developed
Development and an alternative is selected

Design The design team develops detailed PS&Es.

Additional land needed for the project is purchased.

Right-of-
Way
The State or local government selects the contractor,
Construction who then builds the project.

In other words, a successful highway design process includes the following:

Early and continuous public involvement throughout the project

The use of visualization techniques to aid the public
Early and continuous use of a multidisciplinary design team
The application of flexible and creative design criteria.
REFRENCES

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transport
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/publications/flexibility/ch01.cfm
https://www.google.com.pk/search?q=highway+planning&tbm=isch&imgil=Gxev1hdVlX
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Proceedings of the Eastern Asia Society for Transportation Studies, Vol. 5, pp. 725 - 738,
2005