INTRODUCTION TO

TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING
CHAPTER 1
KA40203
 OVERVIEW
● Transport deals with the movement of people and materials from
one place to another. Movement of people is called passenger
transport and movement materials is called good transport or
freight transport.

● Urban transport deals with transport in towns and cities and rural
transport deals with transport in the rural area. Urban transport is
also known by the term “intra-city”, whereas “inter-city” transport
deals with movement between cities.

● Public transport deals with movement of people in vehicles other

than their own, and includes non-personalised modes like buses,
trains, trams and other intermediate modes of transport.
 ROLE OF CIVIL ENGINEERS IN
TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING
● Transportation involves three elements, i.e., the vehicle, the
path and the terminal.

● The path over which the vehicles travel (roads, airport runway,
and railway truck) is built and maintained by civil engineers.

● The terminals (bus stands, truck depots, railway stations, air

terminals, docks and harbours) where the passengers and
cargo are serviced, are planned, constructed and maintained
by civil engineers.
 ROLE OF TRANSPORT IN SOCIETY
1 Transport: A Vital Infrastructure
Transport, along with power and telecommunications, is a vital infrastructure for the
overall development of an economy. The great industrial revolution happened because it
was possible to transport raw materials to the factories and the finished goods to the
markets. Transport and communications contribute to nearly 5-15% to a country’s
economy.

2 Transport and Economy

Transportation shapes, sustains and enhances the economy of a country. Transport and
economy are closely interrelated, the one depending on the other.

Economy Transport
Rate of Growth of Transport and Economy
2.3 Transport and Poverty Alleviation
Provision of a good road connectivity to villagers can increase the agricultural yield,
employment potential, general health of the rural population and per capita income.

2.4 Transport and Urbanisation

In the low income countries, the bulk of the population lives in the villages depending
solely on subsistence farming. For example, in Ethiopia, a typical African low income
country, the urban population is only 16% (Ref 2). As the transport infrastructure is
expanded, the rural population will slowly migrate to towns and cities, and the shifted
population will gain employment in manufacturing and services in towns and cities. In a
fully developed country, the urban population is very high. For example, in the USA, the
urban population is 79% .

2.5 Exploitation of Natural Resources

Most of the low income and middle income economies depend upon exploitation of
natural resources and their export to sustain their economy. India for example, is able to
export its iron deposits because of its transport infrastructure (railways, roads and ports).
Saudi Arabia, rich in oil, is able to export oil because of good system of pipe lines and
shipping.
2.6 Transport and Place Utility
Raw materials needed for the production of goods are spread over the world and country
rather unevenly. These have to be processed and transformed into consumer goods,
either at the place of their occurrence or at a distantly located industry, and the goods
produced have to be transported to consumer centres. Transport systems thus give
“space utility” to the goods, making it possible for transferring in commodity where its
marginal utility is low, to places where its marginal utility is high.

2.7 Time Utility of Transport

Transport shortens the time needed to travel from place to place. Thus, whereas it may
take 10 hours to travel a distance of 500 km by road on a two-lane congested road, the
time may be reduced to 5 hours if an expressway is constructed. The time thus saved has
a value attached to it, for the passengers, for the commodity in transit and for the vehicles
involved in transport. Thus transport gives time utility.
2.8 Transport Bridges and Separation between the Producer and the Consumer
In India, steel is produced in the coal and iron ore belt of West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand,
Chhattisgarh and Orissa. It is consumed all over the country. Transport makes it possible
to bridge the separation between the producer and consumer.

2.9 Transport Helps Preserve The Quality Of Perishable Goods

Perishable goods like milk, fruits, vegetables, fish, poultry products, meat and flowers can
be transported quickly from the places of production to the consumer over long distances
by means of refrigerated containers travelling by road, rail and air.

2.10 Transport Reduce the Cost Of Goods

A good system of transport (for example: good roads) has a low cost of transport. This
helps in bringing the goods to the consumer at a reduced cost.

2.11 Transport Accelerates Agricultural Development

Modern agriculture requires inputs like better seeds, pesticides, and fertilisers. The inputs
can reach the farmer at a low cost if there is a good transport system. Similarly, the farmer
is encouraged to produce more only if the price of his produce at the market centre is
attractive. A good road system reduces his cost of transportation, and the farmer is
induced to produce more to earn a surplus.
2.12 Transport and Tourism Promotion
Tourism can be promoted only if the tourists can reach the destination in a short time and
at affordable travel costs. Thus, the key to tourism development is a good transport
system.

2.13 Transport Promotes Industrial Development

The Industrial Revolution which took place in Europe owes a lot to the break-through in
transport such as in Railways ( steam engines) and shipping. Newcastle in U.K. produced
coal which could be transported to other cities like Birmingham (to produce steel) and
Manchester (to produce textiles). Cotton from India could be shipped overseas to run the
Manchester textile mills in U.K.

2.14 Transport is Vital for Defence and Strategic Needs

The U.S Interstate Highway system was conceived to provide a high level of service to
interstate travel and to meet defence needs. The Autobahn system in Germany helped
the Germans to move their tanks and supplies to the war front. In India, the vast network
of border roads has served to guard the country’s frontiers. Air Transport is also essential
to move troops and supplies to the war front.
2.15 Transport Facilitates International Trade
Singapore port, which handles several millions of containers, has developed as an
international hub of trade, India’s major ports like Bombay, Clacutta and Madras, have
handled to the country’s international trade, backed by a good system of railways and
roads in the hinterland. London, New York and Hamburg are other examples of ports that
handle large quantity of international trade, backed up by good port facilities and railways
and roads in the hinterland.

2.16 Transport Facilitates Administration of Vast Areas

The Trans-Siberian Railway in Russia is a classic example of how a major transport link has
helped in administering the remote area of Siberia. The Qinghai Lhasa railway line recently
completed in 2006 has given quick access to Tibet from China. The Jammu Kashmir
valley Railway line, slated for connecting Kashmir Valley to the rest of India’s vast rail
network will facilitate the administration.

2.17 Transport Facilitates the Specialisation and Economies of Scale

Taking the case of laptop computers, several countries are associated with the production
of components like keyboard, display screen, motherboard, cables, mouse, each country
specialising in a particular part and producing it on a mass scale. This results in economies
of scale.
2.18 Transport Influences Growth of Cities
As motor vehicles became popular in USA, the people found it more convenient to move
out from the crowded central part of towns to the suburbs. Good roads made it possible
for people to commute to the workplace in a reasonable time.

The underground tube railway of London has made it possible for people to reside on the
outskirts and travel to work comfortably.

The construction of a new bridge across the Thane creek separating the island of Bombay
and the mainland has given birth to a new flourishing township on the mainland (New
Bombay). Cities have grown historically on the banks of great rivers which facilitated the
movement of people and goods.

Examples : London (on the Thames River) and Newcastle (upon the Tyne river) in U.K,
Patna (on the Ganges river) and Calcutta (on the Hooghly river) in India.
2.19 Transport Facilitates, Evacuation and Relief Operations during Natural
Disasters
The importance of a good system of transport to reach out to people affected by
natural disasters is enormous. Examples of the Tsunami in India, Katrina in US, Bhuj
earthquake in India amply demonstrate this.
MODES OF TRANSPORT
3.1 Multiple modes
To meet any given demand for transport of people and goods within a country and
between countries, multiple modes are available, each mode having its own advantages
and disadvantages. The changes in technology taking place often renders the choice of a
mode a difficult task and the transport planner has to reckon future possibilities.
Considerations of sustainability, environmental effects and economy are important. The
various modes available, their characteristics and criteria for choice are discussed in this
chapter.

3.2 Important Modes currently available

The important modes of transport currently available are:
1. Roads and Road Transport
2. Railways -Surface- Underground (Tube) - Elevated
-Light Rail Transit (Tram and other modern system)
- Mass Rapid Transit (known as Metro in India)
3. Air Transport
4. Water Transport
-Coastal shipping - International shipping - Inland Water Transport
 CRITERIA FOR MODE CHOICE
The choice of a particular mode is governed by various criteria such as :
1. Speed
2. Adequacy
3. Frequency
4. Regularity
5. Safety
6. Environmental Impact
7. Responsibility
8. Cost
9. Fuel Efficiency
10. Employment Generation
11. Comfort
SPEED
Speed is a prime importance in the movement of people and goods.

Table 3.1 gives some typical speeds of various types of vehicles.

Speed
(Range as prevalent in
Mode/Vehicle Remarks
India)(KM/hr)

1. Railway (Broad Gauge) 50-120 High Speed Trains such as the Bullet trains which
can travel at 250 km/hr
2. Road Transport
Cars 30-120 Speeds are low in hills. High speeds are possible
in Expressways
Busses and Trucks 20-80
Two-wheelers 25-60
Autorickshaws 15-30
Cycles 8-15
3. Air Transport
Concorde 2250
Boeing 747/Air Bus 1000
 Speed
Mode/Vehicle Remarks
(Range as prevalent in India)(KM/hr)
Boeing 707 950
Propeller Aircraft 300-400
Helicopter 200-300
4. Water Transport
Ocean Liners 35-55
Coastal Ships 15-35
Barges for Inland Water Transport 10-25
ADEQUACY
Adequacy is the capacity of a mode to transport people and goods. The capacity of a
railway system is governed by the number of trains that can be handled per day. Table 3.2
gives some values.

Capacity of Roadway System

1. Single Track 20-30 trains per day

2. Double track with manual track control 60-80 trains per day
3. Double track with centralised track control 160-200 trains per day

In India, super-fast trains consist of over 20 coaches and carry over 2500 passengers.
Metros (Mass Rapid System) can cater to trains with a headway of 2 minutes, and can
carry 60,000 persons per hour per direction. In modern Light Rail Transit, capacity up to
20,000 persons/hours/direction is possible. Goods trains in India can haul 50-60 wagons,
each wagon having payload of 50-80 tonnes.
As regard roads, traffic is heterogeneous consisting of fast moving vehicles of various types
and slow vehicles like cycles, cycle rickshaws and animal-drawn vehicles. Traffic is
represented in terms of Passenger Car Units (PCU) and the following design capacity values
as follows:

Capacity of Roadway System

Carriageway Width Design Capacity (PCUs/day)

Single lane (3.75 m) 2000
Intermediate lane ( 5.5 m) 6000
Two-lane (7.0 m) 15,000-17,500
Four-lane (Divided) 35,000-40,000

The following values of passengers occupancy in vehicles have been found from Indian
Studies.
SAFETY
Road transport is known for its poor record of safety in India. Nearly 140,000 persons get
killed every year in India’s roads. Engineering, Enforcement, and Education are three Es
of safety and in all of these, India has a lot to improve.

Rail transport is comparatively safe since trains move on a dedicated track and crossing
and overtaking take place only in stations under controlled conditions. Unmanned level
crossings present a safety hazard. But when accidents do take place, the death toll is
very high.

Air Transport has and excellent record of safety because of strict measures of
recruitment of pilots, maintenance of aircrafts, control of movement of aircraft, modern
instruments for landing and strict vigilance against terrorist. Accidents are caused by
bird hits, lightning, storms and fog. Whenever an accident takes place, the death toll is
very high.
FREQUENCY AND REGULARITY
Almost all modes of transport offer frequent and regular schedules, which are very
important for customers.

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
Roads and Road Transport use liquid fuel which emit considerable amount of pollutants
causing health hazards and smog which is dangerous to driving. Noise pollution and
visual intrusion are other serious effects.

Road construction consumes considerable quantity of stone aggregates and thus raises
serious doubts about its sustainability. Rail transport does not create environmental
hazards. In India, the toilets in the trains discharge into the trac and this needs to be
stopped by adopting modern methods such as those used in aircraft.

Water transport also does not create adverse environmental impact. So also pipelines and
ropeways. Aircrafts produce noise which is of a high order causing discomfort to residents
near airports.
RESPONSIBILITY
Responsibility is the extent to which the facility operator meets liabilities or compensation
for damages, loss or theft. A government owned operator like railways and reputed
airlines are better than private truck operators.

COST
Air transport is the costliest for passengers and goods movement. For urban travel,
passenger fares are almost similar for buses, suburban trains and Metros. For long
distance passenger travel, bus fares and rail fares (by ordinary second class sleeper) are
almost same. But air-conditioned fares by rail are higher than bus fares.

As regards freight movement, road transport is cheaper for short hauls up to 300-350 km,
but beyond this the advantage lies with railways. High value commodities like tea, cotton
textiles, TV sets, electronic goods, vegetables and fruits etc. prefer road transport because
of lower costs and other advantages. As regards long hauls, the cost advantages lies with
railways. Bulk goods like iron ore, coal, fertilisers prefer railways for long hauls, though
road transport may be choice for short hauls up to 200-250 km.
FUEL EFFICIENCY
The energy intensity of air transport is obviously very high, followed by rail, road, water
transport and pipeline. Table below gives some typical values.

Energy Intensity Of Various Transport Modes

MODE ENERGY REQUIREMENT

A. Passenger Litres per Passenger-Km
1. Modern Aircraft like Boeing 747 0.05
2. Car (4 seats) 0.025
3. Bus (52 seats) 0.005
4. AC Railway Berth 0.016
5. Non-AC Railway Sleeper Berth 0.003
B. Freight Litres per Tonne-Km
1. Rail 0.008
2. Heavy Commercial Truck 0.03-0.06
3. Light Commercial Vehicle 0.104
COMFORT
Air travel is the most comfortable. rail travel, particularly in AC coaches is also comfortable.
Bus travel by AC sleeper coaches is not uncomfortable for journeys up to 300 km. Travel by
car can be comfortable for medium distance up to 300 km.