Chapter I

-[4 hours]

Introduction to Transportation
Planning and Engineering

1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

CHAPTER OUTLINES
1.1 Modes of transportation: Highways, Railways and
waterways.
1.2 Comparison between various modes of transportation and
constraint on their development in Nepal.
1.3 Approach to road planning: establishing economic and
environmental viability, evaluating alternatives, peoples
participation in planning and decision making.
1.4 Historical development of roads and road construction
in Nepal
1.5 Classification of roads: based on volume and based on
locations.
1.6 National road network, City or local networks, and ring
roads.

1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

Introduction to Transportation Planning

and Engineering

Transportation System:

Application of technology and scientific principles to the planning,

functional design operation and management of facilities for any mode
of transportation to provide the safe, rapid, comfortable, convenient,
economical and environmentally compatible movement of people and
goods
ITE (Institute of transportation Engineers)

Concern with :
Passenger Transportation and
Freight Transportation
Role of Transportation in Society
Economic role
Social role
Political role
Environmental role

1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

 Impact of Transportation
1. Economic Development
2. Social Development
3. Spatial Development
4. Cultural Development
5. Political Development

1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

 Components of Transportation System

Fixed Facilities
E.g. railway track, roads, airport, etc

Flow Entities
E.g. vehicles, railway locomotives, aircrafts

Control System
E.g. traffic light at intersection, road signs and
markings, air traffic control etc.

Characteristics of transportation system

Multi model
i.e. cover all mode of transport both for passenger and freight

Multi sector
Composed of govt. private, public etc

Multi problem
Includes national & international policy issues, financial issue, management
issues etc.

Multi objective
Aiming at national & regional economic development, environmental and
social quality, etc.

Multi disciplinary
Depends upon theories and method of engineering economics, operations
research, political andPrepared
social By:
science,
psychology, management and law, etc.
Er. Ramesh Bala
1/8/17

Khwopa College of
Engineering

 Scope of Transportation Engineering

1. Transportation Planning
Deals with the development of action plan for the
design, construction and operation of transportation
facilities

2. Geometric Design
Includes cross sectional features, horizontal and
vertical alignment and intersection design

3. Pavement Design
Deals with structural design of flexible and rigid
pavement
Design mainly cover:

1/8/17

Structural aspect -> strength

Functional aspect -> riding quality
Drainage -> to protect pavement from damage due to water
infiltration
Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala
Khwopa College of
Engineering

4. Traffic Engineering
Focus on the public safety, efficient use of transport resources and
the mobility of people and goods

5. Materials, construction and maintenance

Highway materials and mix design; highway construction; earth
work; construction of different type of pavements;
pavement failures; maintenance of pavements and drainage system.

6. Others
Public transportation -> focus on urban travel by bus and rail transit
Finance and economic analysis -> for saving travel time and
quantify the return from project
EIA -> identify impacts and tries to develop strategies for its
mitigation
Accident analysis and reduction ->looks for causes of accident from
different perspective and formulates plans for reduction
ITS -> helps to operate transportation system much effectively with
significant reduction in the adverse impacts of transportation

1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

Transportation System Classification

I. Primary modes of transportation
Land Transportation: a. Highways b. Railways
Air Transportation: a. Domestic b. International
Water Transportation: a. Inland b. Coastal
c. Ocean
II. Secondary modes of transportation
Ropeways (Cable based cabin)
Pipe lines (Water, gas, sewer)
Canal (Irrigation, water drainage)
Belt Conveyors
1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

Aviation (Airways)
Advantages:
Improves accessibility to otherwise inaccessible areas.
Provides connectivity over land and water (no change of
equipment)
Saves productive time spent on journey.
Relief and rescue operation.
Maximum speed: Modern jet can travel at 1000 km/h.
Safest mode of Transportation.

Disadvantages:
Heavy funds are required, not only initially but also during
operation.
Operations are highly dependent upon weather conditions.
High energy consumptions.
High safety provisions are required.
Noise pollutions.
Highly sophisticated instruments and machinery are needed.
1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

Railways -> Trains move on the steel

tracks laid on the ground resulting
in heavy expenditure on basic
infrastructure.
Advantages
Trains move at much higher speed than pneumatic
type vehicle on modern highways.
Steel tracks can take three to four times heavier
axle loads than roads.
The energy required to haul a unit load through a
unit distance by railways is about 16% on
comparison to road transport.
Overall cost (initial cost, operating cost and
maintenance cost) is less than that for roadways.
No steering required to control the movement.
Safe in comparison to road transport.
1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

10

 Disadvantages
Huge investment of capital.
It cannot provide a door to door service.
need huge man power for the proper functioning.
Routes and timings cannot be adjusted to individual
requirements.
unsuitable and uneconomical for short distances
and small traffic of goods.
Because of huge capital requirements and traffic,
railways cannot be operated economically in rural
areas.
The ruling gradient for railways in plains is 1 in 150
to 1 in 200 and in hilly regions is 1 in 100 to 1 in
150. The steeper gradient needs more powerful
locomotives, smaller train loads, lower speeds
Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala
resulting in costly
hauling
1/8/17
Khwopa College of
11
Engineering

Road Transport
Advantages of Road Transport
Wide geographical coverage.
Large influence area
Low capital investment
Door to door service
Flexibility
Quick and assured deliveries
Highest employment potential
Low cost packaging
Personalized travel and service
Economy
Overall development of the country

Disadvantages of Road transportation

Land coverage
Environmental pollution
Rate of accident is high
Energy consumption
Uneconomical (due to accident and
environmental effect)
Delay and congestion (Problem of
Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala
motorization)
1/8/17

Khwopa College of
Engineering

12

 Waterways
Water transport is the process of
transport that a watercraft, such as
boats and ship, makes over a body of
water, such as a sea, ocean, lake, canal or
river.
If a boat or other vessel can successfully
pass through a waterway it is known as a
navigable waterway.
Although it is slow, modern sea transport is
a highly effective method of transporting
large quantities of non-perishable goods.
Transport by water is significantly less
costly than air transport for
transcontinental shipping.

1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

13

Other Modes of Transport

Pipeline transport -> sends goods through a pipe,
most commonly liquid and gases are sent, but
pneumatic tubes can also send solid capsules using
compressed air. For liquids/gases, any chemically
stable liquid or gas can be sent through a pipeline.
Cable transport / Ropeway is a broad mode where
vehicles are pulled by cables instead of an internal
power source.
It is most commonly used at steep gradient.
Ropeway is the oldest transportation system.
Tuins are the example of ropeway in Nepal.
Present scenario:
Passenger Ropeway -2 no. -> Kurintar, Chandragiri
23 Gravity Goods ropeway
1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

14

 Spaceflight is
transport out of
Earth's atmosphere
into outer space by
means of a spacecraft.
While large amounts
of research have gone
into technology, it is
rarely used except to
put satellites into
orbit, and conduct
scientific experiments.
1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

15

Constraints on the development of Road

Transportation in Nepal
Difficult geographical condition (Hilly and mountainous)
Poor geological condition ( unstable soil, landslide etc)
Hydrological (River system)
number of river crossings
run-off is very high in monsoon and velocity is high
Lack of financial resources
Technological development.

1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

16

Constraints on the development of other modes of

transportation in Nepal
Railways:
Initial investment is high
Geographical condition
Technological development(lack of experience)
Waterways:
(Nepal is land-lock country so only inland transportation
is possible)
High velocity of water in monsoon period
Water level in rivers
Airways:
Transportation cost is very high and not affordable for
each people.
Only for small aircraft/ helicopters.
1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

17

(Assignment 1)
Comparison between various modes of transportation.
Mode: Railways: Waterways: Land ways Airways:
factors
Safety
Speed
Economy /cost of construction
Comfort
Energy

1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

18

 Transportation Planning:
Planning may be defined as: -> activity
or process that examines the
potential of future action to guide a
situation or system towards a desired
direction
Transportation system requires a
continuous planning to optimally
satisfy the mobility requirement of the
society
Utilized the available resources in the
best possible way and in a systematic
manner. Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala
1/8/17

Khwopa College of
Engineering

19

1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

20

 Types of Planning:
1. Short
2. Medium
3. Long

Short and Medium Term

Planning
Less complex
Put no great demand on
construction activity
Concerned with obtaining
optimum operation with
existing facilities

Long Term Planning

Complex problem and put
greater demand
Required huge financial
expenditure and system
approach for desired
solution

1/8/17

System Approach: ->

decision making
process for solving
complex problem and
composed of :
1. System Analysis
2. System Engineering

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

21

 System Analysis:
Clear evaluation of problem, forces and strategies needed
for achievement of objectives

System Engineering:
Organizing and scheduling the complex strategies and
includes following:

Tackling the problem considering all the facts

Use of scientific methods
Working as per predetermined sequence
Scientific Decision

In dealing with the long term transportation planning

three basic elements should be considered:
Forecasting Demand
Description of economic, social and environmental changes
Evaluation of system in terms of benefits and loss

1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

22

Models used for Transportation Planning

Population Model
Economic activity Model
Land Use Model

4 steps
Modelling
Trip
Generation Model
Trip Distribution Model
Model Split Model
Traffic Assignment Model

- Divided into two phases

1. Calibration Phase
models are built and tested using data
from a base period
2. Projection Phase
Developed models are used to
determine future transport demand
based on socio-economic projection for
a design year

1/8/17

Prepared By: Er. Ramesh Bala

Khwopa College of
Engineering

23