URBAN TRANSPORTATION PLANNING

UNIT-II
TRANSPORTATION PLANNING PROCESS
2 MARKS QUESTION & ANSWERS
1. Define study area and write the importance of it.
Once the nature of the study is identified, the study area can be defined to encompass the
`area of expected policy impact. The study area need not be confirmed by political
boundaries, but bounded by the area influenced by the transportation systems.
 The boundary of the study area is defined by what is called as EXTERNAL CORDON or
simply the CORDON LINE. Thus cordon line is an imaginary line representing the
boundaries of the study area.
 The travel pattern, transport facilities, land-use pattern and economic activities in this
area are studies intensively through detailed surveys (such as home interview method).
Outside the external cordon, changes in land-use pattern are considered to be less
significant and therefore are examined in a less detailed manner. No home-interview
studies are carried out beyond the external cordon
2. What are the different sources of data?
The following are the some of the surveys that are usually carried out to collect the
information of travel data.
(i) Home Interview Surveys
(ii) Commercial Vehicle Surveys
(iii) Taxi Surveys
(iv) Road Side Interview Surveys
(v) Registration Number Plate Surveys
(vi) Public Transport and Intermediate Public Transport (IPT) Surveys
3. Define trip.
It is a single (OR) one directional movement of one person from one point (origin) to a
second point (destination) for a single purpose.
4. What are the advantages of home interview surveys?
From home interview surveys, (a) the travel pattern of the residents of the household and
(b) the general characteristics of the household influencing trip-making, can be collected.

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5. List four steps of transportation planning.

The following are the four steps of transportation planning
 Tip Generation
 Trip Distribution
 Modal Split
 Traffic Assignment
6. State the objectives of transportation planning.
 “Urban transportation planning” involves the evaluation and selection of highway
or transportation facilities to serve present and future land uses.
 Transport planning is highly essential in shaping cities, enabling economic activities,
promoting community interaction, and enhancing quality of life.
 It is also essential for sustainable development and ensuring safe accessibility at
various levels for all individuals.
7. What is the purpose of a traffic analysis zone?
Once the study area is defined, it is then divided into a number of small units called
traffic analysis zones (TAZ) or simply zones. The mass of data collected during the
planning surveys is huge and it is quite difficult to analyze and interpret in its crude form.
To overcome this problem, the study area is divided into zones.
8. Which type of information is sought form a road side interview?
Road side interview survey is one of the methods of carrying out a screen line or cordon
survey. Suitable for collecting the travel data of external to external movement, external
to internal and internal to external movements.

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ESSAY QUESTION & ANSWERS

1. What is Zoning? Discuss the point to be kept in mind while doing zoning.
The defined study area is sub-divided into smaller areas called zones (or) Subdivision of the
Study Area into Traffic Zones.
Need for Zoning: The mass of data collected during the planning surveys is huge and it is
quite difficult to analyse and interpret in its crude form.
To overcome this problem, the study area is divided into zones.
Traffic Analysis Zones (TAZ): Once the study area is defined, it is then divided into a
number of small units called traffic analysis zones (TAZ) or simply zones.
Zones are two types:
(i) Internal Zones: The zones within the study area are called as internal zones.
(ii) External Zones: The zones outside the study area are called as external zones
Zones are modeled as if all their attributes and properties were concentrated in a single point
called the zone centroid.
Coding the Zones: A convenient system of coding the zones will be useful for the study.
One such system is described below.
 Divide the study area into 9 sectors.
 The central sector (CBD) is designated as 0 and the remaining 8 are designated 1 to 8
in a clockwise manner.
 The prefix 9 is reserved for external zones.
 Each sector is subdivided into 10 zones bearing numbers 0 to 9.
 Thus a system of three digits denotes a sub-zone.
Zoning Principles (Zoning Guidelines)
Although the list is not complete, few guidelines are given below for selecting zones.
(i) Land-use is the most important factor in establishing the zones for transportation
survey. The predominant land-use patterns for establishing the zones are (a)
residential (b) industrial (c) commercial (d) recreational (e) open Space and (f)
shopping etc.
(ii) Zones should have homogeneous characteristics, especially in land use,
population etc.

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(iii) Anticipated changes in land-use should be considered when sub-dividing the

study area into zones.
(iv) Zones should match other administrative divisions, particularly census zones,
since the census is a very useful source of much data needed for transport
planning.
(v) Zone boundaries should match cordon and screen lines, but should not match
major roads.
(vi) Zones should be as smaller in size as possible so that the error in aggregation
caused by the assumption that all activities are concentrated at the zone centroids
is minimum.
(vii) Natural or physical barriers such as canals, rives etc can form convenient zone
boundaries.
2. What are the methods of origin and destination study? Explain home interview
method in detail.
The following are the some of the surveys that are usually carried out to collect the
information of travel data.
 Home Interview Surveys
 Road Side Interview Surveys
 Registration Number Plate Surveys
Home Interview Surveys
Home interview survey is one of the most reliable types of survey to collect the
essential facts on present day travel desires and habits. This data in combination with data
from land-use and economic studies serve as basis for projecting future travel patterns.
From home interview surveys, (a) the travel pattern of the residents of the household and (b)
the general characteristics of the household influencing trip-making, can be collected.
(a) Information on Travel Pattern includes the following
 Number of trips made
 Origin & destination of trips
 Purpose of trip
 Travel mode

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 Time of departure from origin

 Time of arrival at destination and so on..
(b) Information on Household Characteristics includes the following
 Type of dwelling unit
 Number of residents
 Age, Sex & Race
 Vehicle ownership
 Number of employees in a house
 Number of drivers
 Family income and so on..
 Based on these data it is possible to relate the amount of travel to household and zonal
characteristics and develop equations for trip generation rates.
 Bureau of Public Roads (BPR) has been precisely described, how the interview is to be
conducted and what information is to be collected.
BPR standards for Sampling Size for Home Interview Survey
Recommended Sample Minimum Sample Size
Population of the Area
Size (Dwelling Units) (Dwelling Units)
Under 50,000 1 in 5 1 in 10
50,000-150,000 1 in 8 1 in 20
150,000-300,000 1 in 10 1 in 35
300,000-500,000 1 in 15 1 in 50
500,000-1,000,000 1 in 20 1 in 70
Over 1,000,000 1 in 25 1 in 100

3. Discuss important steps in transportation planning process.

The following are the important steps in transportation planning process:
1. Trip frequency
2. Destination
3. Mode
4. Route or other choice

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Determines how many trips each activity (center) (residential area,

Trip generation
commercial area, etc) will produce or attract

Determines the origin or destination of trips that are generated at a

Trip distribution
given activity

Determines which mode of transportation will be used to make the

Modal split
trip

Determines which route on the transportation network will be used

Traffic assignment
when making the trip

4. How are IPT surveys carried out?

In developing countries IPT modes are common for passenger travel within the study
area. The IPT vehicle is also called as para-transit. A variety of IPT vehicles are (a) Motor-
cycle rickshaw (b) Auto-rickshaw (c) Cycle rickshaw and (d) Tonga etc. The collection of
travel data in IPT modes is quite similar to those commercial vehicle surveys or taxi surveys.
Commercial Vehicle Surveys
 Commercial vehicle surveys are conducted to obtain information on journeys made
by all commercial vehicles (trucks) based within the study area.
 The addresses of the vehicle operators are obtained and they are contacted.
 Forms are issued to the drivers with a request that they record all the trips they would
make.

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Taxi Surveys
 Large urban areas usually have a sizeable amount of travel by taxis. In such cases, a
separate taxi survey is necessary. The survey consists of issuing questionnaires to the taxi
drivers and requesting them to complete the same.
5. Explain about desire line diagrams.
 Straight line on a map representing the movement of people and goods from region to
region. Also shows strength of desire to move with lines of proportional thickness.
 Desire lines are used to illustrate on a map the flows of people or goods from point to
point based on the values from a matrix.
 For many cities, the grid of the streets and transit systems were likely laid down long
before the buildings grew up around them. But as cities transition in ways that challenge
the century-old plan, they need new and quick ways to improvise connections between
areas of growth. These are known as "desire lines."
 Desire lines are applied on a slightly larger scale, to urban transit improvements. A desire
line would therefore be a new bus route or bike path or ferry line that draws that more
direct line between two areas people want to go. A subway system is about building a
larger infrastructural network; a desire line connects place to place.
 When defining the desire lines, connections between the poles, it is necessary to
determine the optimal connections that will ensure good availability to a particular traffic
zone (pole). Designing a line of desire is a very complex task. First of all it is necessary
to satisfy various interests.
 For example, a traveler will want a direct link between the poles while the investor, in
order to reduce the cost, will force a centralized system with one line from the starting
point of the higher level to each of the poles of the lower level within the same functional
unit.
 Therefore, the primary role of the transport planner is when planning the transport
network to determine the optimal variant of possible transport connections, which will
increase the availability and reduce the cost of the network.

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 Given the demands of users and the configuration of space, transport network can be
grouped into several basic types or schemes: radial scheme, radial-ring scheme,
rectangular scheme, rectangular-diagonal scheme, triangular scheme, free scheme, etc.

6. Discuss about various sampling techniques.

The need for sampling is based on the realization that in transport studies we are often
dealing with very large populations. To attempt to survey all members of these
populations would be impossible.
There are many types of sampling methods, each of which is based on the random
sampling principle. The most frequently encountered methods are:
(a) Simple random sampling
(b) Stratified random sampling
(c) Multi-stage sampling
(d) Cluster sampling
(e) Systematic sampling

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(a) Simple Random Sampling

Simple random sampling is the simplest of all random sampling methods and is
the basis of all other random sampling techniques.
Definition: A simple random sample is a sample of size n drawn from a population of
size N in such a way that every possible sample of size n has the same chance of being
selected.
 In this method, each unit in the population is assigned an identification number
and then these numbers are sampled at random to obtain the sample.
 Here, population refers to the collection of people, households, locations, etc. that
the study is focusing on.
(b) Stratified Random Sampling
Definition: A method of sampling that involves the division of a population into smaller
groups known as strata. In stratified random sampling, the strata are formed based on
members' shared attributes or characteristics. A random sample from each stratum is
taken in a number proportional to the stratum's size when compared to the population.
These subsets of the strata are then pooled to form a random sample.
In a stratified random sample, the population is first classified into groups (called strata)
with similar characteristics. Then a simple random sample is chosen from each strata
separately. These simple random samples are combined to form the overall sample.
Examples of characteristics on which strata might be based include: gender, state, school
district, country, age.
(c) Multi Stage Sampling
Multistage sampling is a random sampling technique which is based on the process of
selecting a sample in two or more successive, contingent stages.
Consider, for example, a multi-stage survey of travel patterns for an entire nation. The
process may proceed in five stages as follows:
(a) First-stage: divide nation into states and sample from total population of states.
(b) Second-stage: divide selected states into Local Government Areas and sample from
these Local Government Areas within each selected state.

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(c) Third-stage: divide selected Local Government Areas into Census Collectors'
Districts and sample Census Collectors' Districts.
(d) Fourth-stage: divide selected Census Collectors' Districts into households and
sample households.
(e) Fifth-stage: divide selected households into individuals and sample individuals.
(d) Cluster Sampling
Cluster sampling is a variation of multi-stage sampling. In this method, the total
population is first divided into clusters of sampling units, usually on a geographic basis.
These clusters are then sampled randomly and the units within the cluster are either
selected in total or else sampled at a very high rate.
(e) Systematic Sampling
When random sampling is being performed in conjunction with a sampling frame list, it
is frequently more convenient to use a technique called systematic sampling rather than
rely on the use of random numbers to draw a sample.
Systematic sampling is a method of selecting units from a list through the application of a
selection interval, I, such that every I th unit on the list, following a random start, is
included in the sample. The selection interval is simply derived as the inverse of the
desired sampling fraction.
7. Summarize about expansion factors.
Data collected at the different types of field survey which utilize a sampling procedure,
must be expanded to represent the whole population, and to account for missed
interviews. This is achieved through the use of expansion factors and ordinarily they are
calculated for each zone used in the survey:
i) Expansion factor used for home-interview study:
total number of households in the survey area
EF for Home Interview =
total number of successful interviews

This is calculated from the following formula, for each traffic zone.

𝐴 𝐶
𝐴 – 𝐵 (𝐶 + 𝐵 × 𝐷)
𝐸𝑥𝑝𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 =
𝐵−𝐶−𝐷
where A = total number of addresses on original list

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B = total number of addresses selected as original sample

C = number o f sample addr esses t hat are inelig ible ( e.g. demolished, non-
residential)
D= number of sample addresses where no response is made (e.g. refusal to
answer, no reply)
ii) Expansion factor used for external cordon survey:
The external cordon survey expansion factor is usually derived for each class
of vehicle, time interval and direction of flow used at the survey point. It is
calculated from the following formula.
𝐴
𝐸𝑥𝑝𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 =
𝐵

where A = the number of vehicles of the specified class counted passing through the
survey point for the relevant time travel
B = the number of vehicles interviewed, of the same class and for the same time
interval
iii) Expansion factor used for commercial vehicle survey: A separate factor is usually
calculated for each traffic zone.
The expansion factor for commercial vehicles is derived in the same way as
the home-interview survey expansion factor.
𝐴 𝐶
𝐴 – 𝐵 (𝐶 + 𝐵 × 𝐷)
𝐸𝑥𝑝𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 =
𝐵−𝐶−𝐷
where A = total number of registrations on the original list
B = total number of registration chosen as the original sample
C = number o f vehic les in t he samp le d is posed o f or unlicensed
D= number of vehicles for which refusals are recorded

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