A Study on Traffic Flow Characteristics and Volume Analysis for Future Solution – A Case Study at Sony Square to Mirpur 10

Traffic congestion is a growing concern in rapidly urbanizing cities, particularly in Dhaka, where mixed traffic conditions and poor infrastructure exacerbate delays and reduce mobility. This study aims to evaluate traffic flow characteristics and volume along the corridor from Sony Square to Mirpur 10 and identify the key contributors to congestion. The research follows a systematic methodology involving manual traffic volume counts using tally counters and video recordings at strategic locations across four daily time slots over ten consecutive days. The collected data were categorized by vehicle type and analyzed through conversion to Passenger Car Units (PCU) to standardize heterogeneous traffic. Microsoft Excel was employed for data tabulation, graphical analysis, and service flow rate calculations. The Highway Capacity Manual (HCM) framework was used to evaluate the Level of Service (LOS) at different times of day. The findings reveal that evening peak hours exhibit the most critical congestion levels (LOS F), while morning peaks also approach capacity (LOS E). Midday and afternoon periods show relatively smoother flow (LOS B and LOS C/D, respectively). Contributing factors to congestion include excessive vehicular traffic, the absence of dedicated lanes, inefficient signal timings, unauthorized street parking, and a lack of traffic discipline among both pedestrians and drivers. Based on these insights, the study proposes practical recommendations, including the implementation of dedicated lanes, optimized signal coordination, strict enforcement of parking regulations, and enhanced public transportation operations. These strategies aim to alleviate congestion and support efficient traffic management in urban corridors, such as Mirpur 10.