Masters Degrees (Civil Engineering)
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Browsing Masters Degrees (Civil Engineering) by browse.metadata.advisor "Bester, C. J."
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- ItemThe analysis of road traffic accident data in the implementation of road safety remedial programmes(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2001-03) Mollet, C. J.; Bester, C. J.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Civil Engineering.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: A road safety remedial programme has as an objective the improvement of road transportation safety by applying road safety engineering remedial measures to hazardous road network elements in a manner that will be economically efficient. Since accident data is the primary manifestation of poor safety levels it must be analysed in manner that will support the overall objective of economic efficiency. Three steps in the process of implementing a road safety remedial programme, that rely on the systematic analysis of accident data, are the identification of hazardous locations, the ranking of hazardous locations and the evaluation of remedial measure effectiveness. The efficiency of a road safety remedial programme can be enhanced by using appropriate methodologies to measure safety, identify and rank hazardous locations and to determine the effectiveness of road safety remedial measures. There are a number of methodologies available to perform these tasks, although some perform much better than other. Methodologies based on the Empirical Bayesian approach generally provide better results than the Conventional methods. Bayesian methodologies are not often used in South Africa. To do so would require the additional training of students and engineering professionals as well as more research by tertiary and other research institutions. The efficiency of a road safety remedial programme can be compromised by using poor quality accident data. In South Africa the quality of accident data is generally poor and should more attention be given to the proper management and control of accident data. This thesis will report on, investigate and evaluate Bayesian and Conventional accident data analysis methodologies.
- ItemEmpirical study of heavy vehicle operating speeds on mountainous downgrades in the Western Cape, South Africa(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2016-03) Oncke, Jandre; Bester, C. J.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Civil Engineering.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Heavy vehicles play a major role in the economic well-being of a country through its significant role in moving freight. Therefore any adverse effect to the road freight, from being stuck in traffic to being involved in a fatal accident, will have negative impacts on the economy and on the safety of the persons involved. Therefore it is paramount to understand how and to what extent factors such as road geometrics, vehicle characteristics and weather conditions affect the safety of heavy vehicles. There are several countermeasures addressing the issue, with the most common approach being to supply drivers with better information. This is done through the use of a grade severity rating system (GSRS) or weight specific signs (WSS) that direct heavy vehicle drivers to adopt a slower and more suited speed for the relevant downgrade. However, there are no such countermeasure or system deployed in South Africa, and simply adapting the current GSRS and WSS might not suffice, since most of these models are outdated and does not account for newer technology or regulations. Thus, this research paper aimed to gain a better understanding of how the select geometric and vehicle characteristics influence the operating speed of heavy vehicles on downgrades, and ultimately to formulate a mathematical equation that can be used to estimate the operating speed of heavy vehicles on downgrades. The equations can be used to design WSS for South African mountain passes. The variables that have been identified as important in this study include, operating speed, gross vehicle mass, gradient, downgrade length, curve radius, superelevation and stopping distance. The operating speed is taken as the dependent variable and measure of safety, since it is the most common relatable variable among the diverse and complex nature of heavy vehicle operating systems. In order to collect data of the select variables, the critical section for each mountain pass was identified. This was done by following descending heavy vehicles and determining the relevant speed profiles. This was done multiple times for each pass, so that a combination graph could be obtained, which was analysed to identify the critical section. Data for the variables were collected using various devices and means. The operating speed and number of axles were collected by video recordings, and gradient, downgrade length and curved radius were collected with instruments such as a GPS and theodolite. The mass of the heavy vehicles were obtained from the weighbridges situated along routes of the relevant mountain passes. Analysing the data were primarily done through regressing the data, with the calculated operating speed through the critical sections as the dependent variable. Three regressions were done, namely a general regression, regression with a change in horizontal alignment and a regression with a compulsory stop at the base of the downgrade. Equations were found for heavy vehicle speeds on steep downgrades in general and on downgrades that subject operating speed to small curve radii. A logical exercise was also done, in which it was attempted to determine driver familiarity with the select downgrades. It was found that only half of all the observed heavy vehicle drivers exhibited familiarity with the given pass. Based on the finding that more relevant information is needed by the drivers and the lack of a sufficient means of conveying information to heavy vehicle drivers, it is fitting that an improved alternate to the GS 505 signs be found. The two equations found in this study can be used to this end.
- ItemEstablishing and applying speed-flow relationships for traffic on rural two-lane two- way highways in the Western Cape(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2013-12) Twagirimana, Janvier; Bester, C. J.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Civil Engineering.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Speed-flow-density relationships are the most useful tools in the highway design and planning process. They are useful in predicting the roadway capacity, in determining the adequate level-of-service of traffic flow and in determining travel time for a given roadway. Two-lane two-way rural highways constitute the vast majority of the rural road network in South Africa. Nowadays in the Western Cape and other provinces of South Africa, the speed-flow-density relationships normally used for rural transportation studies are derived from the Highway Capacity Manual, which reflects the traffic conditions in the North American situation. Since the North American traffic conditions may be different from the South African conditions, a need to investigate speed-flow-density relationships on these highways in South Africa arises in order to justify any investment made on these roads. In this context, a video technique was used to collect traffic flow data during morning peak hours on two rural two-lane two-way highways in the Western Cape Province in order to investigate these relationships. Through the use of Adobe premiere C.S 6 software, travel time of individual vehicles and distance headways were measured and used in computation of average speed and average density. Several researchers have developed models to describe the relationships between traffic characteristics on uninterrupted flow facilities. In this study, some of these models were tested using collected data in order to investigate which model fits the data satisfactorily. Statistical methods were used to evaluate the ability of each model to predict the flow characteristics over the whole range of data. Average speed and density data were used through regression analysis to perform curve fitting and testing of these developed models. In the next stage, the model which provided a best representation of the data on each section was selected and through the application of the steady-state equation (2.1), flow-density and speed-flow relationships were established on these sections. The available data were also used to investigate the impact the observation time has on the speed-flow curve and the resulting capacity value. Finally, the developed speed-flow curves were used to determine the capacities of the study sections. These capacity values were used to determine if the shoulder usage contributes in increasing the capacity of two-lane two-way highways by comparing them to the capacity provided by HCM.
- ItemEstablishing and applying speed-flow relationships for traffic on South African freeways(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2001-12) Roux, Jacques; Bester, C. J.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Civil Engineering.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Peak mornmg traffic-flow data were obtained from video footage of three representative freeway sections on the Nl and N2 westbound towards Cape Town. Flow, speed, and density measurements were made from the footage with the aid of a stopwatch. Many researchers (2-12) have originated and developed models to describe the relationships between traffic flow characteristics (speed, flow, and density) on freeways. In this report, a number of these models have been investigated with data obtained from South African freeways. The ability of each model to predict flow parameters over the entire range of data was evaluated with the aid of statistical methods. The tests were performed by regressing average speed vs. average density. Flow-density and speed-flow relationships were derived through application of the steady-state equation (2.6). In each case, a final model was chosen through visual inspection that consisted of two separate curves, one for the uncongested flow regime and one for the congested flow regime. Furthermore, speed-flow relationships were examined for individual lanes and compared to relationships established for average lanes. The models were also compared to models obtained from overseas studies (1,16,19) as well as from studies done locally (17). A secondary objective of this study is to investigate the performance of existing freeway facilities through application of the relevant models to the traffic-flow data of a particular facility. The current peak-morning performance of the N2 freeway section is investigated in terms of travel-time and travel cost. The particular study section consists of three lanes, the right hand lane being an HOY lane dedicated to taxis and buses. Different hypothetical cases are investigated. The first hypothetical case is an investigation into the traffic situation on the freeway section without the influence of the HOY lane. The second hypothetical case investigates the traffic situation on the section with perfect operation of the HOY lane. The current performance of the N2 section is compared to the performance of each of the hypothetical cases.
- ItemInvestigating fatal road accident data(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2007-03) Van Niekerk, Andri; Bester, C. J.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Civil Engineering.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis concerns the investigation of four analyses techniques in terms of their utility and adequacy for analyzing fatal road accident data in South Africa. PROBLEM DEFINITION: Road accident data are summarized annually in various forms, but the relationships between the different categorical variables are not determined. The study aimed to address this problem. Road accident rates are published in order to compare year-to-year change in an accident rate. It was necessary to investigate a method to determine whether these year-to-year changes are statistically significant and whether there should necessarily be a reason for concern when an increase in accident rate is detected. Multiple regression models also including qualitative variables were investigated in this study. ACCIDENT DATA AND ANALYSIS TECHNIQUES: Road accident data were found available in the format of a MS Access database which could be manually investigated. Traffic and speed data were readily available from Mikros Traffic Monitoring (Pty) Ltd in the form of SANRAL's CTO Yearbooks and was found to be reliable and sufficiently detailed. Any road geometric data were omitted from the study due to insufficient detail available. All data were found to show levels of poor data quality. Certain variables were thus omitted from the study e.g. the age group variable. The fatal road accident database was analysed using Correspondence Analysis and Association Rules (for analyses of the categorical variables) and, the application of the Poisson distribution for chance variation analyses and Multiple Regression Analyses (for the continuous variables). METHODOLOGY: Fatal road accident data were gathered by performing queries in the fatal road accident database. Traffic and Speed data were gathered by manually investigating the SANRAL CTO Yearbooks and manipulating the data to be integrated with the fatal road accident database. After all data manipulation was completed, the four analyses techniques mentioned above were applied using the software package Statistica. FINDINGS: Correspondence Analysis and Association Rules were found to be adequate for analysing categorical road accident data variables with some data quality limitations and insufficient data sampling. The time period used for chance variation analysis was too short to deliver significant results. Three multiple regression models were created with one of the models being able to predict the number of fatalities per fatal accident with k equal to approximately 40%. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS: The following conclusions are drawn and recommendations are made based on the findings of this study: ~ Detailed and quality road accident data for South Africa is unavailable. Better quality data are urgently needed for the purpose of analysis. ~ Correspondence Analysis is found to be the most appropriate technique for road accident data analysis and should be applied on an annual basis. ~ Association Rules Analysis results are influenced by small sample sizes and too many unknown variable categories. Larger sample sizes and exclusion of the unknown categories might improve the results. ~ The analysis period for chance variation is too short and a longer period will provide more significant results. ~ The multiple regression model predicting the number of fatalities per fatal accident is accepted in terms of utility and adequacy.
- ItemLongbeach Mall : traffic impact assessment(Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2001-12) Bulman, Andrew; Bester, C. J.; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Civil Engineering.This Traffic Impact Assessment (TIA) was commissioned in March 1998 as a supporting document to an application for the rezoning of an ert in Noordhoek from general housing to commercial use. The proposal at the time was to develop a medium·sized 15 000 m2 GLA shopping centre with supporting offices and a Health & Racquet Club. All the work (including managing the traffic counting team) was carried out by myself under the guidance of Dr Piet Jordaan at Gibb Africa Consulting Engineers. As financial backing and anchor tenants were secured for the development, the size of the proposed shopping centre was increased from a local facilily to a regional facilily of 31 000 m2 GFA to be developed in two phases. This necessitated a complete revision of the approach and content of the TIA. Owing to the regional nature of the new development, the TIA was expanded to include a wider geographical area of influence and a longer development period. This revised TIA was carried out by myself between September 1998 and March 1999 under the guidance of Dr Herman Joubert. Longbeach Mall opened for business in April 2001 complete with upgraded road network as recommended in the TIA The TIA is submitted as the final-year project for my Master's Degree in Traffic & Transportation Engineering. For the purposes of completion, an after·study of current traffic conditions on the local road infrastructure has also been included. The after·study was carried out in October 2001 (6 months after Longbeach Mall opened) and includes traffic counts at critical intersections during the Saturday morning peak period, observations of parking area utilisation, observations of shopping centre occupancy and discussions of the possible reasons for differences between predicted and actual traffic volumes. Confirmation that the study is original and was carried out by myself and permission from Arcus Gibb (Ply) Ltd to use the study as part of my final-year project, is provided in Appendix A.
- ItemMorning peak period travel characteristics of a residential suburb in Cape Town during a school and holiday period : what lessons can we learn?(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2008-03) Hermant, Laurent Fernand Leon; Bester, C. J.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Civil Engineering.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: It is argued that an understanding of variability is central to the modelling of travel behaviour and the assessment of policy impacts and is not the peripheral issue that it has often been considered. There is a growing need to assess multi-day data to assess the distribution of user charges for road pricing, or patterns of public transport usage as well as improve the ability to identify mechanisms behind travel behaviour for modelling purposes. Drawing on studies worldwide, in conjunction with a review of the literature, the thesis first examines the relevance for using multi-day data, then discusses the methodology and results of a five week survey undertaken specifically for this study, makes a comparison of the findings with that observed in other studies, and finally discusses issues relating to the application of the data and future research possibilities. Previous studies have shown that behaviour which makes up the daily travel pattern can be highly repetitious in nature but that observing an individual’s behaviour on a single day might not be representative of their routine travel and that this behaviour varies across demographic segments and driver gender. This paper examines day-to-day travel behaviour variability of a residential area, Summer Greens, located in Cape Town (South Africa) using a travel dataset collected recently in November/December 2006. The survey technique employed was the recording of numberplates of all exiting vehicles from 06:00 to 10:00, weekdays from Monday to Friday over a period of five weeks. A total of 5677 vehicles undergoing 44 743 trips was observed and analysed. This research replicates and extends previous work dealing with day-to-day variability in trip-making behaviour that was conducted with data collected by Del Mistro and Behrens (2006) in Buitengracht Street, Cape Town CBD, in July/August 2005. The present research extends the earlier work by including departure time variations as well as conducting the observations during both a school period (3 weeks) and consecutive holiday period (2 weeks). Further, the thesis presents a method to measure day-to-day variability using the available data surveyed. This thesis finds a considerable difference in school and holiday traffic volumes as expected, but that despite this, certain identical travel behaviour patterns (such as vehicle appearance frequencies, following week repeat proportions etc.) is observed during both these periods. It was found that the peak hour for both school and holiday periods occurred during the same time period and greater traffic volume variability was found to occur on Fridays during the holiday period than in the school period. Traffic volumes across all weeks appeared to decrease from Monday to Wednesday and “bounce back” on Thursday and Friday consistent with the findings of another international study. It was found that motorists exhibited more departure time freedom during the holiday period with average holiday departure times much later than during the school period. Departure times were also observed to gradually become later from Monday to Friday during both the school and holiday periods with Thursday and Friday departure times significantly different to the other weekdays. The proportion of unique vehicles observed was found to increase with time of day and the resulting impact of this on the effectiveness of Variable Message Sign (VMS) applications is also discussed. The research concludes by applying the findings to determine the impact of a hypothetical congestion pricing scheme on traffic volumes.
- ItemOorsake van padongelukke met verwysing na die R44 tussen Somerset-Wes en Klapmuts(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2004-12) Vogel, Liesel; Bester, C. J.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Civil Engineering.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: South Africa, and other developing countries, experience great problems concerning road traffic accidents. Despite road safety campaigns like Arrive Alive being launched, accident rates do not decline significantly and the problem is predicted to get worse. This study is done on a road in the Western Cape, the R44, to investigate the causes of road accidents. The causes of the accidents are deduced from the accident reports and relationships are sought with other factors. The results of this study are risk factors (human-, environment- and vehicle factors) for the 14 accident types that occurred on the R44, as well as measures to prevent road accidents. It has been found that the human factor plays the biggest role in road accidents. Out of the 404 accidents analysed, 77.7% were caused by human factors, 8.7% by unknown factors, 7.2% by environmental factors and 6.4% by vehicle factors. The problems experienced with the data quality are reported and recommendations concerning it are made.
- ItemPost-calibration and quality management of weigh-in-motion traffic data(Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2010-03) De Wet, Dirk Pieter Gerhardus; Bester, C. J.; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Civil Engineering.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Weigh-in-motion (WIM) scales are installed on various higher order South African roads to provide traffic loading information for pavement design, strategic planning and law enforcement using a scientific approach. The two most respected international guideline documents for WIM systems are the American ASTM E1318 Standard and the COST 323 European Specification, yet neither are fully suited to be applied to local WIM systems. The author developed a post-calibration method for WIM data, called the Truck Tractor (TT) Method, to correct the magnitude of recorded axle loads in retrospect. It incorporates a series of powerful data quality checks. The TT Method is robust, accurate and adequately simple to be used on a routine basis. The TT Method uses the truck tractor loads of articulated 6- and 7-axle trucks with single steering- and double driving axles – these vehicle are called Eligible Trucks. Only Eligible Trucks with average axle loads between 6.5 t and 8.5 t are used in the calibration process – these vehicles are called Selected Trucks. A calibration factor, kTT, is determined using a fully automated iterative procedure, and multiplied with all axle load measurements to produce data for which the average truck tractor load of Selected Trucks, TTT, is equal to 21.8 t. The TT Method can be used for WIMs in various operating environments and is not sensitive to the extent of miss-calibration of a WIM, clipping of sensors owing to poor lane discipline or different extents of loading on different routes. The TT Method includes a series of data quality checks that can be used on a routine basis. They are summarised as follows: - The standard deviation of truck tractor loads for Selected Trucks, STTT, should always be below 2.0 t, but preferably below 1.9 t. - The standard deviation of front axle loads for Selected Trucks, SFTT, should always be below 0.9 t, but preferably below 0.8 t. - The post-calibration factor from the TT Method, kTT, should be between 0.9 and 1.1. The factor for any month should not deviate by more than 3% from the moving average of the previous five months. - The average of front axle loads of Selected Trucks, FTT, should be between 5.6 t and 6.6 t; the exact values are influenced by load transfer between the steering and driving axles. - A procedure was formulated using the Front axle / Truck tractor Ratio, FTR, to identify the percentage of Eligible Trucks that in all probability clipped the sensor. The percentage of these records must be below 10 %, but preferably below 6 %. The TT Method has the potential to significantly improve WIM data collection in South Africa. The calibration module of the TT Method, i.e. the procedure to calculate kTT, has already been accepted by SANRAL. Most of the data quality checking concepts associated with the TT Method were also accepted, although their threshold values are still being refined.
- ItemPreparing bus and taxi operators for tendering in the Western Cape(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2001-12) Jakoet, J. (Jamiela); Bester, C. J.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Civil Engineering.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: In an attempt to improve the efficiency of the transport system, the national government has instituted a new tender system for public transport contracts. Small bus and taxi operators are unfamiliar with operating in the formal sector. This study focuses on the extent of their disadvantage in the current tender system and recommends measures to counterbalance this. A questionnaire was devised to determine how much assistance these operators would require to prepare them for the tender, using the model bus tender document as a basis for this. The response rate was 20% with 14 taxi and 17 bus questionnaires being retrieved for analysis. The results showed that 10% of operators had no know ledge of the tender and many needed training in basic accounting and business procedures as well as public transport operation skills. Recommendations included institutional changes in public transport funding, management and allocation of resources as well as the type of education and training required. These changes should be implemented soon enough to ensure that small, medium and micro enterprises (SMME) operators are well prepared for the new tender system.
- ItemA stepwise approach towards achieving a multimodal platform within the context of the CoCT’s land transport networks(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2013-03) Struwig, Claudia Bernadine; Bester, C. J.; Andersen, Simen Johann; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Civil Engineering.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The importance of transport should not be underestimated. Transport progresses a person’s quality of life: it connects people to one another and provides access to work, services and recreational opportunities. However, post-apartheid South Africa is unfortunately still faced with a legacy of segregation. While the less-privileged, who mostly live at the fringe of Central Business Districts (CBDs), are captive users of public transport, the private vehicle trend, under the privileged, is becoming more evident. This research project thus proposes that a balanced and integrated sustainable transport system be promoted. That is, one that will aid South Africa in growing and improving its general socio-economical status by providing all its citizens with (equal) access to a balanced transport network. It is believed that, if a multimodal system is promoted, the deficiencies of the current heterogeneous non-integrated systems may be overcome. Therefore, if South Africa’s transport network is augmented with a multimodal platform, the nation will be able to move its citizens effectively and efficiently, without jeopardising the economy, social matters and the environment, today and in the future. Moreover, South Africa will also have the necessary stimulus to utilise the already available resources at its disposal by working together as ‘one’. This research project thus stipulates a (generic) sequential approach needed in achieving an integrated (sustainable) public transport system. The goal of this research project is to create awareness of the benefits that may arise from, and the implementation steps required in obtaining, such a multimodal platform. The focus area for researching the proposition made herein is the City of Cape Town’s (CoCT’s) land transport networks. The City has a management facility, with resultant transport data repository, known as the Transport Management Centre (TMC). This TMC is regarded as one of the finest state of the art facilities in the world and the features thereof offer a sufficient base and point of departure for the promotion of a multimodal transport system. By conducting research in this field, the following portraying aspects, needed for the realisation of the proposition made herein, were found. Firstly, in order to obtain an integrated sustainable transport system, the appropriate Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) need to be integrated. It is believed that, if an intelligent transport scheme, grounded on ITS applications, is advocated, the City will be in the position to more effectively monitor what is going on, to more accurately predict what might happen in the future, and to manage its transport system proactively on an area-wide basis. Secondly, in order to meet the integration requirements imposed by multimodal transport, a centralised database needs to be created. With such a database in place, information sharing across all modes of private- and public land transport, and thus also between the investors or the operators, will be possible. An example of such a database was developed in Microsoft Access and the modes considered therein are: MyCiti, Metrorail and Golden Arrow Bus Service (GABS). The data stored in this database is historic, but the incorporation of real time information was also catered for. Thirdly, it is believed that the success of the City’s transport system, and the development of a multimodal system, is dependent on the provision of an efficient Advanced Traveller Information System (ATIS). The idea is to promote multimodal transport as a convenient transit option by providing travellers with information on journey planning that aims to counteract their reluctance to change. In order to develop such a multimodal Journey Planner (JP), the unimodal networks considered herein were combined into a supernetwork on which Dijkstra’s Shortest Path Algorithm was applied. This algorithm was programmed in Microsoft Excel’s Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) and it incorporates the following user criteria: the origin, the destination, the user’s mode preference, and the user’s optimisation preference of either time or distance. In conclusion, it can be argued that, with information becoming such a vital commodity in everyday life, the catering for informed travellers are the key to successful future transport services. If travellers are informed about the transport networks’ performance, a positive attitude is fostered. Moreover, by providing travellers with information on journey planning, their feelings of uncertainty and fear of the unknown, that are present in (especially) public transport services, may be neutralised. This information will give the public carte blanche to make decisions that give them the perception of having more ‘control over their lives’. Therefore, if a multimodal JP that can be accessed from one portal is created, people’s inclination to acquire more information will be met. And as a result, traversing in an integrated manner may become the norm.
- ItemTowards a non-intrusive traffic surveillance system using digital image processing(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2001-12) Lorio, Berino; Herbst, B. M.; Bester, C. J.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Civil Engineering.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: With the increased focus on the use of innovative and state-of-the-art technology in Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS), the need for more accurate and more detailed road traffic flow data has become apparent. Data obtained from vehicle detector loops, which merely act as vehicle presence sensors, is neither reliable nor accurate enough anymore. This type of sensor poses the problem that it has to be inserted into the road surface; temporarily obstructing traffic flows, and has to be replaced after pavement reconstruction. One of the solutions to this problem is to develop a traffic surveillance system that uses video image processing. In cities where Intelligent Transport Systems are used extensively, roadways are monitored through Closed Circuit Television Cameras (CCTV) that are closely watched by traffic control centre personnel. These cameras are mounted on posts on the roadside. These cameras can serve a dual purpose, being used for both human monitoring and as inputs to Video Image Processing Systems. In this study some of the digital image processing techniques that could be used in a traffic surveillance system were investigated. This report leads the reader through the various steps in the processing of a scene by a traffic surveillance system based on feature tracking, and discusses the pitfalls and problems that are experienced. The tracker was tested using three image sequences and the results are presented in the final chapter of this report.