Lesson 7
TRANSPORTATION PLANNING
Transportation planning deals with the development of a comprehensive plan for the
construction and operation of construction facilities. The planning process should be
continuous and dynamic which is, it should be sensitive to the continuing changes in the
socio-economic needs, technology and financial status of a nation and its people. The
planning process should be rational rather than political, where decisions on
construction and operation of construction facilities are taken by political functionaries to
gain short-term political popularity. If this is the case, the development is piecemeal and
crisis-mitigation oriented leading to largely inefficient use of the limited resources.
PROCESS SCHEMATIC DIAGRAM OF THE TRANSPORTATION PLANNING
Elements of Transportation Planning
A rational transportation planning process begins with the definition of the goals and
objectives which are to be achieved through transportation and ends with the
development of an implementation strategy of a particular course of action.
1. Statement of Goals and objectives
2. Identification of needs
3. Generation of alternatives
4. Evaluation of alternatives
5. Implementation of alternatives
Statement of Goals and Objectives
The policy making body often defines a set of objectives which it seeks to achieve
through the development of transportation facilities.
Identification of Needs
In this step, we identify the components of the transportation system needed to
satisfy the goals based on the present conditions and forecasts of future conditions
of travel demand, fuel cost, etc.
Generation of Alternatives
In this step the alternative plans are developed which address the needs identified in
the previous stage. Based on the identified needs, the transportation planners have
to identify various alternatives which will match those needs. While determining the
alternatives, the planner needs to look at the:
1. various modes like roadways (either individual transport or public transport
system), railways, waterways and airways,
2. The technological aspect (such as high-speed trains, raised monorails,
drivers’ information system,
3. The traffic engineering aspects, such as improving the flow pattern in an area
by making certain roads one-way, reducing delay on arterial roads by
improving signalization or grade-separating intersections,
4. the regulatory aspect (such as reserving the lanes for only high occupancy
vehicles, disallowing high polluting vehicles on the road, imposing speed limit,
Evaluation of Alternatives
Any alternative will have implications such as:
1. financially
2. economically
3. land-use wise and demographically
4. technologically
5. environmentally
In this stage, each alternative is evaluated based on these implications.
Financial feasibility analysis
Most alternatives have some financial implications in this analysis.
1. The first objective is to determine how much a particular alternative will cost both
in terms of capital investment and operating and maintenance costs, how the
capital cost is structured, that is whether the investment is phased over a period
of time or whether it has to be made-up front.
2. The second objective is to determine whether it is possible to meet the costs of
the alternative based on budgetary considerations, (of government who are
generally the primary investors in the transportation sector) loan availability. If an
alternative can be borne financially, then it is financially feasible.
Economic impact analysis
The objective of this analysis is to assess the various economic effects of an
alternative. The economic effects of an alternative include its impact on:
1. Travel time of users
2. Out-of-pocket cost to users
3. Improved business opportunities
4. Improved accessibility to various locations
Some impacts may be beneficial while others are not.
Technical implication analysis
Each alternative assumes that its features are achievable technically. The
technological requirements and their feasibility are the subject matter of this analysis.
An example is that although a certain alternative is technically feasible now, it would
have been technically infeasible thirty years ago.
Land-use and demographic impact analysis
Every transportation facility has an impact on the land-use and demographic
characteristics of the area. The development of a road for example may change the
land-use of an area from unused low land to a bustling shopping complex. Changes
in land-use may often lead to changes in the demographic statistics of an area. For
example, building better connections between the city center and the suburbs may
see a shift of high-income group people from the city to the suburban locations.
Some of the land-use and demographic changes may be desirable but others may
not. Given an alternative, transportation planners should analyze these changes so
as to assess the impact of the alternative.
Environmental impact analysis
Construction of any major transportation facility and its use has a direct impact to the
environment. The impact on the environment is at many levels and only a simplistic
view of this effect leads to the following 3 directions of impact:
1. The construction of the facility (road) may entail changing the natural features of
the land which can lead to problems like loss of habitat for wildlife
2. The use of the facility (by vehicles) may increase the air and noise pollution
levels of the immediate surroundings
3. A better facility may encourage frequent travel and hence greater use of the
non-renewable fossil fuel.
Implementation of Alternatives
Once the implication of all the alternatives have been evaluated, these alternatives
can be rated from the most advisable to the least. The most advisable alternative
may then be chosen for implementation. The task of planning ends with the
development of a detailed road map of how the alternative will be implemented.
The implementation strategy should identify or put into place a method of identifying:
1. The agencies and instruments that will be used to finance the project.
2. The agencies or organization that will implement the project on the ground
3. The agencies to be entrusted with maintaining and operating the facility
4. The operating agency.
The end of the planning process signals the start of the implementation process
