Question

Two platoons of cars are timed over a distance of 0.5km. Their flows are recorded.

The first group is timed at 40 seconds, with the flow at 1350vehicles per hour.
The second group take 45 seconds, with a flow of 1800vehicles per hour.
Determine the maximum flow of the traffic stream.

Answer 1

To determine the maximum flow of the traffic stream, we need to use the formula:

Flow = (3600 x Distance) / Time

where Distance is in kilometers, Time is in seconds, and Flow is in vehicles per hour.

For the first platoon:

Flow = (3600 x 0.5) / 40 = 45 vehicles per minute x 60 minutes = 2700 vehicles per hour

For the second platoon:

Flow = (3600 x 0.5) / 45 = 40 vehicles per minute x 60 minutes = 2400 vehicles per hour

To find the maximum flow, we need to add the flows of both platoons:

Maximum flow = 2700 + 2400 = 5100 vehicles per hour

Therefore, the maximum flow of the traffic stream is 5100 vehicles per hour.