Civil Engineering (Transportation Engineering) Essays

Civil Engineering (Transportation Engineering) Essays Civil Engineering (Transportation Engineering) Essay Civil Engineering (Transportation Engineering) Essay Essay Topic: Nashville Name Course Instructor Date Civil Engineering (Transportation Engineering) A. Civil engineering is a specialized engineering discipline, which involves in construction, design and the continuation of the physical and naturally made environment. Civil engineering is also the process of applying physical and scientific principles. Roads, buildings, bridges are set under this field. The civil engineering works are seen in the construction of main roads in the country incorporating the profession to built strong, stable and longer lasting sites. The history of civil engineering is associated with knowledge of science, geology, geography, mechanics, structures and other subjects. Engineering has been a feature of the human life since time immemorial and its earliest practices are traced back to the Ancient Egypt when people began agriculture and abandoned their nomadic lifestyle. A gap for housing created the need for shelter construction and civil engineering was born. Civil engineering is inclusive of both the private and private sector. In government, it is from the lowest level of municipal council to the national federal government. The government hires the work of professional engineers for the buildings and infrastructural development. These engineers also help the government to formulate, direct and safeguard building laws by establishing codes of construction of structures and buildings. For the private sector, it is local companies, homeowners, national and international companies. Without civil engineering, the buildings, roads, railways, air systems, dams would occasionally deal with problems of instability, unsafe and eventually fall apart. It covers wide range professions involving various fields. These professions include environmental engineering, geotechnical engineering, urban engineering, structural engineering, transportation engineering, hydraulic engineering and construction engineering. Environmental engineering improves the natural environment by applying science, engineering, and assess construction projects and their effects on the environment. Environmental engineers engage in studies of pollution, control of radiation levels, setting laws for environmental engineering, containing levels of wastewater and provide insight on the engineering laws of the environment (ABET) Construction engineering occupies the position similar to that of a business nature with the supplies and conducting logistical operations, price monitoring and drafting or reviewing agreements and contracts. It fits in a variety of design executing and planning of transportation, hydraulic, site development, and geotechnical and construction engineers. Management of buildings, highways, airports, railways, bridges and other infrastructures is carried out by construction engineers. (Chapman, p.67) Geotechnical engineering is a branch of Civil Engineering collaborating with knowledge from geology, mechanics concerning the rock and soil (earth material) Geotechnical engineers deal with building at ground level by investigating semi surface materials and conditional ties to uncover their properties. As a result, the standards of a solid foundation of the construction project are set (Engineering and Technology) Structural Engineering is an area concerned with the structures like towers, sea gas fields, bridges in their design and analysis. They formulate design considerations such as strength, stability, cost and sustainability of the structure. (Sims, p. 65) Urban Engineering also called municipal engineering takes in aspects of art, science and engineering for the environment in urban areas. It stipulates designing and assesses publi c works, public and leisure parks, networks for water supply and sidewalks. The professionals coordinate and manage these infrastructures. Transportation engineering is an area particular with transportation design, Intelligent Transport System (ITS) designing and maintaining transport infrastructure. Efficiency and safety is important in transport engineering. B Transportation engineering is a major feature of civil engineering and a preferred choice for many. The facilities supported are air, water, railways, space and pipeline transportation. It is a broad area, of railway engineering, port and harbor engineering, pipeline engineering and airport engineering. Technology and specialized scientific principles are applied into the operational planning, functional design and coordination of facilities for a variety of modes of transport. This provides for comfortable, convenient, efficiency and safety in the movement of persons and their goods. Urban planning is related to this field of engineering in terms of planning by using forecasting decisions and political issues (Chen et. al, p.120). Passenger travel carries out technical forecasting which usually involves a model of urban planning in estimation of trips in their generation, mode to be undertaken, decisions made by travelers (trip chaining) and distribution. Trips of passengers are vital because they are a representation of the level of demand in either transport arrangement. These human factors are valuable especially with contact of the users, drivers and their vehicles. In designing, transport engineering takes account of the area covered by the facility (size and capacity), vertical and parallel alignment, thickness, weight and the materials to be used. The size and capacity influence the choice the material for construction whether roads, railroads, airports and highways. The alignment is of value whether vertical and horizontal in order to avoid poor positioning of the structures and modes of transport. The thickness is used to make sure the structure is safe and stable to prevent it from falling and killing people in the future. The weight and materials used are key determinants of the design, stability and long lasting of the work constructed. Control and operations techniques in traffic engineering and modern technologies such a s Intelligent (Kapoor, p. 74) Transportation Systems for traveling individual’s modes of information, improved traffic control systems and the integration of vehicles and infrastructure. The practice by the engineers integrates planning for the means of transport and the planning determine the overall outlook of roads, airports, ports and highways. C To become a professional civil engineer, one has to study at a credited institution and acquire an academic degree. The degree has to be a major in civil engineering. The period of study varies from various universities from three to five years. Some offer it as a Bachelor of Engineering while others as a Bachelor of Science. Units such as physics, design, mathematics and some disciplines of civil engineering are covered. Further studies can be undertaken for specializing in a specialized area of interest in civil engineering as some universities offer awards for postgraduate engineering. After education, the engineers are certified after meeting the conditions of a professional engineering body. The requirements are exam results and some level of work experience and other conditions prescribed by the professional body. Afterwards the engineer acquires the title of Professional Engineer according to the United States system. Most Commonwealth countries refer to them as Chartered Pr ofessional Engineer (Kapoor,p.68). Relevant Professional bodies have established International Agreements on engineering that provide for engineers to practice their profession worldwide without border limits. These professional bodies play a key role in making certain that ethical standards are observed. For example in America, only a licensed professional Engineer can make preparations on engineering plans, signed and sealed to the public authority or for other clients. The works are calculation of a study, designs settings, reports, valuations, supervising and analyzing engineering works and technical documents. Specializing in engineering enables an engineer to have an increased knowledge and intense understanding in their area of specialization and expertise. D The West Broadway (CSAH 103) is a transit way project, which has been established in Brooklyn Park this comes after the City of Brooklyn Park agreed to work with the Hennepin County to rebuild the West Broad Way Avenue. The Hennepin County is the lead agency in the development of the construction (Flood, p.85) Increasing the road from about 500ft south of the Candlewood Drive to close to 500ft north of the 93rd Avenue North this is the target of the project. The roadway section will add a new traffic signal at the intersection of the Candlewood Drive. The roadway is to have an upgrade to have four lanes and raise the concrete median. The urban section is to be increased at all intersections inclusive of all the intersections. Locations such as 84th Avenue and 93rd Avenue are also set to receive upgrades. However, there are some conditions, which should be given priority and the Hennepin County for instance, the signal requirements are to be set by the County. The transportation engineers have presented a designed layout to the City Council, which has given the rights to carry on the construction. This was done after they had done the prerequisite preparations and planning. Technological and specialized scientific principles were used to apply into the operational planning, functional design and coordination of various facilities. The engineers are set to maintain and overlook the construction of these structures. They are tasked to make sure that the planning is done well and completed without any obstructions. They will look into the human factors that drive the Broadway project. Such like factor are the trips made by the users, their interface with the vehicles, road and traffic lights and trip chaining. All these will dictate how the overall project’s outcome. The project w ill also purpose to make transportation less costly, easier, environment friendly, accessible and efficient. During the formulation of the project, the engineers considered the size and capacity of the road, alignment and the materials they were to use. The materials are to be of high quality and long lasting. They used advanced technology like the Intelligent Transportation Systems and traffic control systems. They also work with other branches of engineering to prevent any loopholes. They work with environmental engineers in order to prevent environmental pollution and causing harm to both the human and natural environment during and after the construction period. The engineers have also explained the provided environmental rules to avoid infringing the laws of the environment. If there will be a recommended transit way the design plans will have to be revised leading to the amendment of the Environmental Assessment. This is because of inadequate funding and the transit way is not instituted in the initial design. There were no expectations for the financing of the transit way at the time. Moreover, that can be done in the future. Currently, the schedule includes relocating the existing Xcel Energy transmission line and poles along the west side of CSAH 103 between 89th and 83rd Avenues to further locations in the West. This will be the first phase of the Project (Projects of Brooklyn Park, 2012) in 2014, the Northern portions (85th and 93rd Avenues are) of the construction are expected to have began. The South of 85th Avenue is projected for the period of 2015 to 2016. This project is going to improve transportation and increase the area covered, as it is currently narrow. It will improve the accommodation of the corridor users who are primarily the pedestrians, cars, cyclists and residents. The drainage is also going to be upgraded and the roadside ditches removed according to the engineers. The project also shows the challenges transport engineers face in their line of work. Especially challenges arise in transport engineering because it mainly conducts jobs of public works and for the society. Some of the locals on Brooklyn have rejected the proposals made by Hennepin County. On the construction of the sideway and this is a set back because they are forced to compromise in some of the construction sites (Projects of Brooklyn Park, 2012) The lack of proper funding has also reduced the scope of work and the engineers are forced to let do of a section of the project in the transit way. These are the main challenges facing the project. The project is set to enhance the transportation of people and their products and enhance security in the Brooklyn area. Civil Engineering since its inception in Ancient Egypt has improved numerous aspects of human life. The road system has improved since the use of Macadam roads to modernized highways and lanes. The railway engineers have also advanced to fast track rails and speed trains. Civil Engineering in current times is also using space studies a modern means of transport that entails scientific technology of taking people to discover the space and the universe from a different view. Including science and art into the profession has led to construction of historical landmarks and buildings such as the Brooklyn Bridge that will have a lasting effect on the human race. Civil engineering has promoted the construction of environment friendly structures, which prevent pollution and water resources depletion. In the 21st century, the discipline has marked major changes and advances to improve the life of human beings on earth. Work Cited Chapman, Allan. England‘s Leornardo: Robert Hooke and the Seventeenth Century’s Scientific Revolution.2005 CRC Press Print â€Å"Projects City of Brooklyn Park Minnesota† brooklynpark.com. 5 October 2012. Web. 5 October 2012. Chen, Wai-Fah, and J Y. R. Liew. The Civil Engineering Handbook. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, 2003.Print ABET. â€Å"Civil Engineering†. Accrediting College Programs in Applied Science, Computing, 2010, April 8 Web. 5 October 2012 Engineering and Technology. Retrieved from http:www//www.abet.org/ October 5, 2012 web Kapoor, R. Dictionary of Civil Engineering. New Delhi: SBS Publishers Distributors, 2009. Print. Flood, Ian. Towards a Vision for Information Technology in Civil Engineering: Proceedings of the Fourth Joint International Symposium on Information Technology in Civil Engineering : November 15-16, 2003, Nashville, Tennessee, Usa. Reston, Va.: ASCE, 2004. Print.