Spring 2015
Traffic Engineering Syllabus - TTE 5256 / TTE 4201
University of Florida - Department of Civil and Coastal Engineering
Description: The purpose of this course is to provide students with an overview of the fundamentals of traffic
engineering, with emphasis on traffic studies, traffic control devices, safety and crash prediction and traffic impact
analysis.
Objectives: This course deals with the technical aspects of traffic engineering. It covers the analytical procedures and
computational methods employed in a wide variety of tasks related to traffic operations and safety. A person who
completes this course will be able to identify operational problems to carry out traffic engineering studies and evaluate
alternative solutions.
Instructor:
William M. Sampson, P.E. - McTrans Center Director
Department of Civil and Coastal Engineering
508 Weil Hall and 2046 Waldo Road
Phone: 352-294-3095
Email: bsampson@ufl.edu
Weil Office Hours: M-W 1:45-3:15
Teaching Assistant:
Michael Armstrong, Graduate Assistant
Email: armstrongm@ufl.edu
Location:
CSE 107 (EDGE)
Times:
M-W-F 6th Period (12:50-1:40)
Topics Covered:
Congestion:
Safety:
Traffic
Impact
Analysis:
Required Text:
Road Users, Traffic Volumes, Speed Data and Studies
Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) and Signal Warrants
Signal Components, Operations, Timing and Coordination
Crash Rates, Trends, Causes and Issues
Condition and Collision Diagram Analysis
Highway Safety Manual (HSM) and Crash Studies
Intersection Analysis Overview
HCS 2010 Applications
Traffic Impact Analysis Project
No Text Required – All Material Provided
Additional References:"Traffic Engineering" (Fourth Edition) by Roess, McShane, and Prassas.
Highway Safety Manual
Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD)
Class Attendance: You are expected to attend all class meetings and you should let me know (by email or phone) if you
plan to be absent. Everyone is responsible for the material delivered verbally. Requirements for class attendance and
make-up exams, assignments, and other work in this course are consistent with university policies that can be found at:
https://catalog.ufl.edu/ugrad/current/regulations/info/attendance.aspx
Participation: Active participation in class is expected and can impact your grade. The class will be informal and you
are encouraged to bring up any issues pertinent to the subject at any time. Laptop computers will be required for
workshops as part of the Traffic Impact Analysis project using HCS 2010.
Assignments: Homework and in-class exercises will be to reinforce what has been covered in class. Collaborating with
others is fine, but you must do your own work. These assignments are due on February 6 (congestion), March 11
(safety) and April 20 (analysis) and can be turned in until the results are reviewed in class and/or posted on the web site
with a 10% penalty if within a week of the due date.
Project: The traffic impact analysis project will be using material primarily from the last half of the course.
Undergraduate students (TTE 4201) will create a trip generation and distribution (less complex) analysis and graduate
students (TTE 5256) will use that data to conduct the mitigation (more complex) analysis. Each student is required to
complete the assigned analysis, including a narrative report describing the process. The project is due April 22.
Requirements: All submitted material is expected to be professionally prepared and submitted in PDF or XPS format
through Sakai. Make-up work will be accepted with an excuse, considered on a case-by-case basis.
Grades: The following grade distribution will be used for the course:
Participation = 5%
Assignments = 15%
Traffic Impact Analysis Project = 15%
Three Exams (25/15/25) = 65%
95+%
93-94%
91-92%
85-90%
A
AB+
B
83-84%
81-82 %
75-80%
73-74%
BC+
C
C-
71-72%
65-70%
61-64%
60-%
D+
D
DE
A C- will not be a qualifying grade for major, minor, General Education, Gordon Rule or College Basic Distribution
credit. For more information on grading policies: https://catalog.ufl.edu/ugrad/current/regulations/info/grades.aspx
Exams: Exams are administered during normal class time and are scheduled for February 11, March 13 and April 22
(by February 18, March 20 and April 29 for EDGE students). Make-up exams may be accommodated for appropriate
situations.
Honor Code – All students admitted to the University of Florida have signed a statement of academic honesty
committing themselves to be honest in all academic work and understanding that failure to comply with this commitment
will result in disciplinary action. This statement is a reminder to uphold your obligation as a UF student and to be honest
in all work submitted and exams taken. Read more at: http://www.dso.ufl.edu/sccr/process/student-conduct-honor-code/
Accommodation for Students with Disabilities – Students requesting classroom accommodation must first register with
the Dean of Students Office (352-392-8565, www.dso.ufl.edu/drc/). That office will provide the student with
documentation that he/she must provide to the course instructor when requesting accommodation. UF counseling services
and resources are available on-campus for students having personal problems or lacking clear career and academic goals.
Course Evaluation – Students are expected to provide feedback on the quality of instruction in this course by completing
online evaluations at https://evaluations.ufl.edu. Evaluations are typically open during the last two or three weeks of the
semester, but students will be given specific times when they are open. Summary results of these assessments are
available to students at https://evaluations.ufl.edu/results/.
Software Use – All faculty, staff and student of the University are required and expected to obey the laws and legal
agreements governing software use. Failure to do so can lead to monetary damages and/or criminal penalties for the
individual violator. Because such violations are also against University policies and rules, disciplinary action will be
taken as appropriate. We, the members of the University of Florida community, pledge to uphold ourselves and our peers
to the highest standards of honesty and integrity. A student installation of HCS 2010 will be provided for course use only.
Weekly Schedule –
1 – Introduction
2 – Congestion Causes and Mitigation
3 – Data Collection and Traffic Studies
4 – MUTCD and Signal Warrant Analysis
5 – Signal Operations and Timing
6 – Work Submittal, Exam Review and Exam 1
7 – Safety and HSM Overview
8 – Urban and Rural CPM Analysis
9 – Work Submittal, Exam Review and Exam 2
10 – Unsignalized Intersection Analysis Overview
11 – Signal and Arterial Analysis Overview
12 – HCS 2010 Application Workshop
13 – Traffic Impact Analysis
14 – Florida DOT Approach
15 – Project Software Workshop
16 – Work Submittal, Exam Review and Exam 3