What is Transportation?
Safe and efficient movement of
persons and goods over time and
space
– Objectives constant
– Methods change (shipping / railroads /
rural roads / freeways / airports)
Characterized by
– Thing being transported
– Type of vehicle
– Right-of-way
Transportation System
Components
– Infrastructure (~ structural elements)
– Vehicles (~ load)
– Operators/users (somewhat unique to
transportation)
Transportation System
Infrastructure
Road, canal, rail, air
Transfer points
Supporting elements
(signs, signals, safety)
Vehicles Operators/Content
Planes, trains, autos, Drivers, pilots, freight,
buses, ships, trucks passengers
Transportation System
Infrastructure (supply)
– Road - highways, arterials, local streets
– Transfer points – parking areas,
driveways
– Supporting elements – signals, signs,
safety hardware, etc.
Vehicles (demand for movement)
– Vehicles/hour
– Tons/year
– Passengers/month
Transportation System
Supply
Demand
Infrastructure
People/
People/
Vehicles
Vehicles
Freight
Freight
“Fail soft" versus "fail
hard"
– Design criteria is less than
expected load
– Many transportation systems
designed to "fail" twice a day
==> trade-offs
Total U.S. expenditures
– Personal transportation ~12% GNP
– Freight transportation ~ 8% GNP
The speed, cost, and capabilities of
available transportation have a
significant economic impact on an
area
– Rail service (TAMU)
– Interstate freeway system (none to College
Station)
Countries with better/advanced
transportation networks and
services are leaders in industry and
commerce
– USA, Japan, Germany, ...
What is Transportation
Engineering?
The engineering profession is
involved in all aspects of
transportation
– Aeronautical (aircraft)
– Chemical (fuel)
– Mechanical (vehicles)
– Electrical (communications, control system)
– Civil (development of facilities and manage
demand)
Transportation Engineering
One of the specialty areas of civil
engineering
– Development of facilities for the movement
of goods and people
– Planning, design, operation and
maintenance
An interesting / exciting area
Multi-disciplinary
– Economic
– Environmental
– Planning
– Statistics
– Law
– Psychology & human factors
– Public administration
People oriented
Problems ==> solutions
Who Employs
Transportation Engineers?
50% government
40% consultants
5% research, teaching
5% other - rail, trucking firms, etc.
Future: Hot Track (Runner Up)
“Recent passage of $200 billion
transportation bill insures there will be
plenty of highways to design and
bridges to repair. Traffic engineers will
also work with new technology such as
monitors that tell a driver when another
car is in his blind spot and sensors in the
pavement that track road conditions.”
U.S. News and World Report, October 26, 1998
Careers to Count On
“For millions of Americans, girding for
gridlock is a teeth-grinding daily ritual.
And with more cars on the road every
day, engineers and other professionals
trained to reduce traffic congestion are
finding plenty of job opportunities”
“PAY AND PERKS: $45,000 to
$150,000. Producing tangible change is
a source of job satisfaction for many.”
U.S. News and World Report, February 18, 2002
Transportation Engineering
CE Faculty
Faculty
– Dr. M. Burris, CE/TTI 304C
– Dr. C. Dudek, CE/TTI 309I
– Dr. G. Hawkins, CE/TTI 301C
– Dr. D. Lord, CE/TTI 304A
– Dr. Y. Zhang, CE/TTI 301G
Current visiting faculty (TTI staff)
– Dr. M. Abbas, GGB 145
– Dr. B. Eisele, CE/TTI 404F
Transportation Research at A&M
Conducted through the Texas
Transportation Institute (TTI)
– Largest university-based transportation
research institute in the world
– All components of transportation system
– ~100 undergraduate workers hired per
semester
TAMU Academic Program
4 undergraduate CVEN classes
– 307: Transportation Engineering
– 418: Highway Materials and Pavement Design
– 451: Public Works Engineering
– 454: Urban Planning for Engineers
– 456: Highway Design
– 457: Urban Traffic Facilities
8 graduate CVEN classes
– Traffic Engineering: Characteristics, Traffic Engineering:
Operations, Traffic Engineering: Design, Roadside Safety
Design, Transportation System Engineering Management,
Street and Highway Design, Engineering and Urban
Transportation Systems, Advanced Surface Transportation
Systems
CVEN 307
Transportation Engineering
Basic principles and
methods
– Planning, design, and
operations
Vehicle/driver analysis
Multi-modal perspective
Drs. Burris, Zhang,
Hawkins
2 sections/semester
CVEN 454
Urban Planning for Engineers
Urban planning (regulations, land use ...)
Design (interaction between elements)
TERRAMODEL
(Civil Engineering
software)
– Residential site layout
– Roadway, drainage,
sanitary sewer,
potable water .....
Dr. B. Eisele
CVEN 456
Highway Design
Design criteria
Location studies
Alignment
– Horizontal / vertical
Cross section analysis
Dr. D. Lord
CVEN 457
Urban Traffic Facilities
Design & operation of
traffic control devices
Driver-vehicle-rdwy
characteristics &
interactions
Dr. G. Hawkins
What are Current
Transportation Problems?
Congestion
Aging population
Accidents
Aging infrastructure
Increased truck weights
Potential Solutions
Infrastructure expansion/renewal
– $200 billion transportation bill
– Politics
– Limited resources ($, land,...)
New techniques
– More intelligent use of available resources
– Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS)
A&M Information Sources
Department Website
– www.civil.tamu.edu/Ugrad/Transportation
Institute of Transportation
Engineers: TAMU Student Chapter
– ite.tamu.edu
Texas Transportation Institute
– tti.tamu.edu
ITS Research at TAMU
– translink.tamu.edu
Transportation Organizations
Institute of Transportation Engineers
– www.ite.org
Federal Highway Administration
– www.fhwa.dot.gov
American Association of State Highway
and Transportation Officials
– www.aashto.org
Texas Department of Transportation
– www.dot.state.tx.us
Transportation Research Board
– www.trb.org
