EVALUATION OF POSTED AND OPERATING SPEED OF

VEHICLES ON THE ROAD

Abdul Rahman Hilmi, Hussain Hamid & Farzad Hejazi
Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), 43400
UPM Serdang, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia

ABSTRACT: Posted speed is regulated and typically seen on the road sign but the actual speed
being driven by motorists may or may not reflect this speed. Posted speed is determined mainly
based on the road geometrical configuration or the associated risks from prevailing traffic
condition. Operating speed can be defined as the observed common speed selected by motorists
along a particular road section and can also be statistically defined as the 85th percentile speed
of the observed speed distribution. The study objectives are to determine motorists’ operating
speed for a given posted speed on urban road curves, to evaluate their differences and to seek
qualitative relationship between both speeds. 5 study locations with different curve radiuses
shall be selected to obtain operating speed variations and the posted speed at each location shall
be identified. The traffic volume and operating speeds shall be recorded via 1-hour video
capturing to estimate the traffic volume and use of velocity gun to obtain the operating speed.
The recorded speeds shall then be plotted on cumulative plot to obtain 85th percentile speed
which is then evaluated against the respective posted speed at each study location. It is expected
that the operating speeds at most locations shall exceed the corresponding posted speeds based
on reviews on previous journals and researches, however the magnitude of differences is
expected to differ at different curve radiuses where larger difference is expected at smaller
curve radius.

1. INTRODUCTION

Speed limits are an important safety component of road traffic and it is referred to as posted
speed typically seen on the road sign, not only it is enforced by authorities to mitigate risk of
road accidents, it also provides sense of security to cautious drivers and as deterrent to
aggressive counterparts by minimizing the speed differential among drivers. Imposing speed
limits are more crucial at road curves than the straight road as drivers need to balance different
direction of forces on the vehicles in order to manoeuvre safely and this is particularly difficult
when being performed at high speed. However, the actual speed being driven on the highways
does not typically reflect the posted speed, the upgrade on mechanical parts and
instrumentations in modern vehicles has improved manoeuvring capability at corners and more
roads are now built with more than adequate design in terms of widths and curve radius, these
factors influence the increase in average operating speed greatly.
In Malaysia, the imposed speed limit on roads are legislated to regulate the speed of motorists
to mitigate accident rates and it is normally set according to the road geometrical properties
and risks associated prevailing on the particular section of road. However, the actual speed
being driven by motorists may or may not reflect the posted speed set, with the technology of
modern vehicles enabling drivers to handle their vehicles better and the urge of modern busy
life, the posted speed which was set more than 20 years ago may not seem ideal to some drivers.
Therefore, there is a need to study the actual speed being driven in hope to reveal any common
pattern and derive a quantifiable relationship.
The evaluation of operating speed against posted speed may reveal the magnitude of difference
which provide us just how far is the posted speed being effectively implemented to curb the
operating speed. It will also provide us information on how road curves affect the operating
speed of motorists and see if there is any pattern to the speed variation between urban and rural
roads.

2. Concept of Posted and Operating Speed

Posted speed is defined as the maximum allowable speed may be driven by motorists which is
displayed on the regulatory sign along the road. Posted speed differs from statutory speed in a
way that it may be set according to prevailing local condition by local governing authority
while statutory speed (also known as National Speed Limit) is set by the Ministry of Transport
which applies nationally (JKR, 2016). In Malaysia, the posted speed limit varies according to
the hierarchy of road where 110 km/h is the highest limit being set on the expressways and 30
km/h is the lowest imposed at places of public interests such as hospitals, mosques and school
zones, federal and state roads typically have 90 km/h posted speed limit or lower. Posted speed
is determined mainly based on the road geometrical configuration or the associated risks due
to prevailing traffic condition such as accident rates and provision of street parking (JKR,
2016), it is worth mentioning that the posted speed limit principle under the aforementioned
circumstances does not apply to new road where the design speed becomes the basis of
selection for posted speed limit.
Operating speed definition has been revisited by transportation bodies several times over the
past 70 years (Transportation Research Board, 2003), it was initially defined in terms of highest
speed drivers can safely attain under favourable conditions until Fitzpatrick et. al (1995)
redefined it by generalizing the concept as the observed common speed selected by motorists
along a particular road section regardless of the associated favourable conditions. By this
definition, operating speed can be statistically defined as the 85th percentile speed of the
observed speed distribution of a road section, however it has also been defined by adopting the
average speed and pace (MUTCD, 1988).

3. Posted Speed – Operating Speed Relationship

Studies have been conducted in previous years in to discover any tangible link between posted
and operating speed, Transport Research Board (2003) has reported a comprehensive
relationship between posted and the corresponding operating speed by conducting studies on
79 sites covering suburban / urban and rural locations in 6 states of the United States, it was
found that the 85th percentile operating speed has exceeded the posted speed and that the posted
speed is actually near or at 50th percentile. Fitzpatrick et. Al (2002) has mentioned that the
posted speed has great influence on the operating speed where majority of drivers tend to speed
up as the posted speed gets higher, there is a pattern where the 85th percentile speeds are higher
at study locations with higher posted speed.

4. Posted Speed and Operating Speed relations to Road Hierarchy

The road hierarchy also has impacts on the operating speed, according to Fitzpatrick et. al
(2002), vehicles were reported to drive at lowest speed on local roads and fastest on the arterials
in urban vicinity, however speeds at both categories still exceeded the posted speed at 85th
percentile. In rural areas, majority of drivers are driving near the posted speed at 85th percentile
which indicates compliance with legislated speed.

The presence of adjacent constraints also impact the operating speed where operating speeds
were observed relatively low when street parking are allowed. Lower operating speeds were
also observed when pedestrian activity is high. Both findings are consistent with the report of
Fitzpatrick et. al (2002) where vehicles were driven slower on local roads where pedestrian
activity and street parking are normally presence in urban roads.