HIGHWAYS 389 China Street crossing in Rangoon. The intersection is and other municipal authorities share in the over-all one of the busiest in downtown Rangoon, and all planning and carrying out of the improvement. Like¬ possible impediments to smooth traffic flow should wise, the municipal officials have an intimate and day have been guarded against. This would not have been by day knowledge of local problems, and what other a difficult task. Instead, the combination of circum¬ improvements (such as housing, sewers, drainage) are stances makes it one of the most chaotic crossings in in prospect and should be integrated with the highway the city, even at mid-day. A conscientious and com¬ and street program. petent traffic engineering group will be ever watchful It has been found in the United States, where motor of bad developments of this kind, and wUl see that the vehicle traffic is highly developed, that the effect of necessary preventive and regulatory police measures dense urban traffic extends, to a decreasing degree, are taken. some distance away from the center of the com¬ Since the systematic planning and carrying out of munity, which is generally in the downtown business municipal highway and street improvements will, at district. This effect is only gc eral in nature, and no least for some years, be a departure from the present precise rules can be set down for its extent. However, practice, the officials of the local communities wUl studies of a large number of American communities need assistance in gaining the experience that must go indicate that the radius of effect of urban traffic into this kind of study, planning and construction. As begins to be appreciable at about these distances indicated in the recommendations, strengthening of from cities and towns: the planning group in the Public Works Ministry is Radius of Effect* needed to carry the increased responsibilities that go Population (miles) with the rehabilitation program. For municipal im¬ 300,000-1,000,000 25 provements, the planning group will have to establish 100,000-300,000 15 geometric standards, grades, drainage standards, 50,000-100,000 12 minimum requirements for access and many other 25,000- 50,000 9 such factors in the design; wUl have to assist in the 10,000- 25,000 6 preparation, or prepare, the plans and specification 5,000- 10,000 3 for the work; and will then have to give guidance and counsel in the carrying out of the construction. With maintenance also a partial responsibihty of the While the effect is not felt so strongly, nor for as great a distance, in the corresponding cities and towns national government, maintenance programs and in Burma, since the vehicle densities are much less, procedures will have to be set up, in order that the the relationship manifests itself in the same manner. work done may be properly cared for, kept in a Based on the field studies of urban traffic here, it is serviceable and useful condition, and not be per¬ believed that the effect exists to an appreciable degree mitted to deteriorate. for a distance of 3^ to 4 mUes from cities of 10,000 In planning for the rehabihtation of the highway to 25,000 population and 2 miles for towns in the system of Burma, it was found that a vital part of the 5,000 to 10,000 class. This means that in making im¬ improvement program must be local improvements in provements in a community the planning will have to the towns and villages. In the past the growth of the consider developments within a circle of at least this smaUer communities has been a haphazard and un¬ radius, if the future growth of the community and planned development, and this is characteristic of the its developing traffic are not to be adversely affected. routing of the national and district roads through these cities and towns, especiaUy the latter. From the 3. POPULATION FACTORS study that was made of the highway and traffic con¬ ditions in these urban areas, certain basic items devel¬ a. General oped as a common need of almost all of the com¬ In developing a long-range plan for highway munities, and these have been included in the recom¬ development, one of the main influences upon traffic mendations of the Report. is found to be population, especially its distribution in The planning of a program of urban highway im¬ urban areas. As population grows, so does traffic provement for any particular city must be a coopera¬ volume, and especially travel by public vehicles in tive enterprise between the national and district urban areas, and between urban areas. Likewise, truck governments on the one hand, and the local authori¬ traffic between cities and towns increases, as the need ties. One of the prime factors in the planning is the to transport food and other commodities increases. flow of traffic in the area, and since local traffic The number and use of passenger cars, taxis and other regulation and enforcement can either aid or impede types of motor vehicles increases correspondingly. this flow, it is necessary that the local police officials The increase in motor vehicle traffic may, in some 390 ECONOMIC AND ENGINEERING DEVELOPMENT OF BURMA cases, be accompanied by significant shifting in the For the purpose of this section of this Report, as use and type of motor vehicles. As a community relating to highway programs, classifications, etc., the grows, the use of public transport becomes more and communities wUl be classified as foUows: more necessary, if traffic congestion in closely built-up areas is to be avoided, or its results minimized. Major Cities Population over 50,000 5 Other Cities „ 20-50,000 21 As the population shifts within a local community Towns „ 5-20,000 74 it may also become necessary in the interest of proper Villages „ 1- 5,000 120 civic development and of accommodation, both local and through traffic, to re-route the main highways 220 through the community, and even to replan and re¬ locate local streets to expedite the flow of traffic. c. Urban Densities All of these operations are costly, in developed In planning the local improvement program, con¬ areas, both in construction and land acquisition, and sideration was given to planning the street improve¬ the carrying out of the construction also results in ments in proper relationship to the population and major inconveniences to both the travehng public and areas of the communities involved. The relationship the local residents and shopkeepers. In addition, in between population, developed area of the community the larger communities, where there are extensive and highway and street lengths within this area, is electrical, water, and other utility installations, there subject to variation from a number of factors. The will be still further expense and inconvenience in¬ more important factors are the population of the volved in the relocations which accompany the road community, its basic nature, its stage of development, and street modifications. topography, barriers to expansion. For all these reasons, then, it is necessary that the In developing the details of the local projects in the proper weight and consideration be given to the fac¬ first stage of the highway rehabihtation and improve¬ tors making the relocation and reconstruction neces¬ ment program, it was found that with a few explain¬ sary, one of the most important influences being that able exceptions, the population-area relationship was of population, its distribution, and trends. fairly consistent. The following cities will serve as examples: b. Census of Urban Population, 1953 Density (persons per There was conducted in Burma, in 1953, and to the square mile) degree possible under condhions of insurgency and Mandalay 10,200 local unrest then prevaihng, a population census of Henzada 25,100 cities, towns and villages. The resulting figures may Prome 25,500 be summarized as follows: Myingyan 24,400 242 cities, towns, and villages had a total population Chauk 28,400 of 2,843,135. Pyinmana 18,700 Excluding the 22 villages enumerated for which the MeiktUa 18,500 population was less than 1,000, 220 cities and towns Shwebo 20,800 Thayetmyo 14,700 had a total population of 2,826,991. Of these, the five largest cities had a total population The density is based on the area of the developed of 1,133,655 persons, divided as follows: portion of the city, as observed or estabhshed from 1. Rangoon (Town) 711,520 local maps. These are very high densities, as compared 2. Mandalay 182,367 to cities in the United States. Nine comparable 3. Moulmein 101,720 American cities of populations between 40,000 and 4. Bassein 77,382 220,000, based on the 1950 census, were compared to 5. Henzada 60,666 those above. It was found that the average density was 1,133,655 approximately 7,700 persons per square mile; the The remaining 215 cides and towns, each having a figure varying from 6,200 to 9,800. The disparity be¬ population less than 50,000, are distributed numeri¬ tween the cities in Burma and those in the United cally as foUows, for size: States, however, is not as great as the figures show, since the areas in the United States are those within 8 30-50,000 14 8-10,000 30 3-4,000 the corporate limits. These are often somewhat beyond 13 20-30,000 15 6- 8,000 33 2-3,000 the limits of the present developed area. As a result it 16 15-20,000 17 5- 6,000 36 1-2,000 is believed that the average density value in the US would be approximately 9,000 to 10,000 persons per 215 square mile, based on the developed area.