Engineering English
Traffic Volume
Civil Engineering · Last updated: July 30, 2026 · How this entry was written
Definition: Traffic volume is the number of vehicles that pass a point on a roadway during a specified time period, typically expressed as vehicles per hour or per day.
Example in context
“The traffic volume on Interstate 95 during rush hour exceeds 10,000 vehicles per hour.”
“Yoğun saatlerde Interstate 95'teki trafik hacmi saatte 10.000 aracı aşıyor.”
Where engineers use it
Traffic volume data is collected using traffic counters or inductive loops and used for capacity analysis, signal timing, and planning of highway improvements. Engineers rely on it to determine level of service and design adequate facilities.
Synonyms: traffic flow, vehicle count, traffic count
Practice: can you use “Traffic Volume” at work?
You are a traffic engineer asked to analyze a congested urban arterial. You have hourly traffic volume counts for the past year. How would you use this data to recommend improvements, and what key metric would you calculate?
Show a model answer
“What is the current traffic volume on this highway section?”
“Traffic Volume” in 21 languages
| English | Traffic Volume |
|---|---|
| Turkish | trafik hacmi |
| French | volume de trafic |
| German | Verkehrsvolumen |
| Spanish | volumen de tráfico |
| Chinese | 交通量 |
| Arabic | حجم المرور |
| Portuguese | volume de tráfego |
| Russian | объем движения |
| Japanese | 交通量 |
| Italian | volume di traffico |
| Vietnamese | lưu lượng giao thông |
| Hindi | यातायात मात्रा |
| Thai | ปริมาณการจราจร |
| Indonesian | volume lalu lintas |
| Korean | 교통량 |
| Bengali | ট্রাফিক ভলিউম |
| Dutch | verkeersvolume |
| Swedish | trafikvolym |
| Finnish | liikennemäärä |
| Ukrainian | обсяг руху |
Frequently asked questions
What does Traffic Volume mean in engineering?
Traffic volume is the number of vehicles that pass a point on a roadway during a specified time period, typically expressed as vehicles per hour or per day. In Civil Engineering, the term carries a usage-frequency rating of 10/10 in the Engineering English library.
How do you pronounce Traffic Volume?
Traffic Volume is pronounced /ˈtræfɪk ˈvɒljuːm/ (IPA). The Engineering English app plays audio for the term and checks your pronunciation with speech recognition.
How is Traffic Volume used in a sentence?
Example from an engineering context: “The traffic volume on Interstate 95 during rush hour exceeds 10,000 vehicles per hour.”
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