We are innovative and efficient in data collection at McMahon. A fully trained, experienced and deep staff of technicians use continuously upgraded equipment and software to do it. McMahon’s experience in this area covers a full range of data collection services from volume counts and speed data to more detailed roadway characteristics inventories, highway performance monitoring, roadway functional classification, pavement evaluation, qualitative and quantitative surveys and interviews. This capability allows our firm to efficiently and cost-effectively perform the services. Our in-house department serves as the foundation for our traffic and transportation planning work. McMahon plays a key role in providing accurate and timely data information to public and private institutions; data that is used for internal decision making and to prepare our studies.
Automatic Traffic Volume & Classification Counts
McMahon’s automatic traffic volume and/or vehicle classification counts are performed and summarized for traffic volume and/or vehicle classification counts in 15-minute, hourly, and daily intervals. Our fully trained staff monitors counts and verify collected data with manual counts at selected intervals. We have literally conducted thousands of counts for all types of clients.
Manual Turning Movement/Pedestrian & Bicycle Counts
Our transportation systems often include pedestrians and bicyclists. Our trained field technicians count vehicles, pedestrians and bicyclists using computerized counting devices that allow technicians to count vehicle volumes at the same time that record pedestrian and bicycle volumes. Vehicle turning movement, pedestrians and bicycles, including heavy vehicles, are documented. Data is obtained by approach to an intersection, as well as by specific lane assignment or crossing. This information is then peaked, smoothed and analyzed by our engineers for your project.
Origin-Destination Studies
Transportation’s version of “Not in My Backyard” is the belief that all congestion-producing traffic must be coming from somewhere else. McMahon helps you learn where your traffic is coming from with Origin-Destination (O-D) studies that may include personal interviews, mail interviews, license plate tracking, tag-on-vehicle method, lights-on method, or license plate recognition. This information often proves helpful in the analyses and design of improvement alternatives.
Travel Time & Delay Studies
Traffic congestion costs America an estimated $200 billion a year, according to a 2006 Federal Highway Administration
report . The report acknowledges that “congestion is one of the single largest threats to our economic prosperity and way of life.”
McMahon will measure congestion in your area with carefully designed Travel Time and Delay Studies. We use both technology and technicians to calculate travel and running speeds, as well as delays, reporting back on roadway capacity and deficiencies alike. With trusted reports, you’ll be able to justify and plan for roadway improvements.
Trip Generation Counts
The Institute of Transportation Engineer’s Trip Generation Manual has been the conventional source of trip generation estimates for a variety of land uses. However, there are many times in our business, where more specific or local information is useful for land uses that are not typically accounted for in the Trip Generation Manual, or where there are a minimum number of sample studies. In those cases, trip generation studies are useful in determining the trip generation characteristics for the type of land use that is being developed. McMahon performs trip generation studies for these types of land uses to determine an average rate that can be used to estimate future traffic volumes, in addition this local information in also useful in validating the estimates from ITE’s Trip Generation Manual.
Speed Studies
Most highways and motor vehicles are designed and built for safe operation at the speeds traveled by most motorists. Nevertheless, speeding on the nation's roadways is a contributing factor in as many as one third of all fatal crashes. Speeding is a significant threat to public safety and warrants priority attention. McMahon performs speed radar studies on roadways where there is a perceived speeding problem or a pattern of speed-related crashes. These studies are conducted by trained field technicians to provide an accurate representation of the average speed on a specific segment of roadway and help determine if any measures need to be taken to reduce the speeding problem.
Gap Studies
Studies of gaps and gap acceptance are useful in evaluating the capacity and level of service at unsignalized intersections, driveway openings and unprotected left-turns, among other applications. When conducting these types of studies, McMahon collects information along the major traffic stream to determine the number of gaps and the critical gap, which is the minimum gap a driver will accept. The results of a gap study are normally utilized to calibrate our typical capacity software to account for local conditions.
