Programme: BEngHons Transportation Engineering

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Code Faculty
12240112 Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology
Credits Duration NQF level
Minimum duration of study: 1 year Total credits: 128 NQF level:  08

Programme information

The curriculum is determined in consultation with the relevant heads of departments. A student is required to pass modules to the value of at least 128 credits.

The degree is awarded on the basis of examinations only.

Admission requirements

  • A BEng degree awarded by the University of Pretoria; or a four-year bachelor’s degree in engineering that ECSA regards as acceptable for registration as a candidate engineer and for eventual registration as a professional engineer.
  • The departmental Postgraduate Committee reserves the right to make a thorough assessment of the applicant's academic transcript and CV, and to decide if the applicant is suitable for postgraduate studies. This assessment may include an oral or written entrance examination.

Examinations and pass requirements

  1. The examination in each module for which a student is registered, takes place during the normal examination period after the conclusion of lectures (i.e. October/November or May/June).
  2. A student registered for the honours degree must complete his or her studies within two years (full-time), or within three years (part-time) after first registration for the degree: Provided that the Dean, on recommendation of the relevant head of department, may approve a stipulated limited extension of this period.
  3. A student must obtain at least 50% in an examination for each module where no semester or year mark is required. A module may only be repeated once.
  4. In modules where semester or year marks are awarded, a minimum examination mark of 40% and a final mark of 50% is required.
  5. No supplementary or special examinations are granted at postgraduate level.

Pass with distinction

A student passes with distinction if he or she obtains a weighted average of at least 75% in the first 128 credits for which he or she has registered (excluding modules which were discontinued timeously). The degree is not awarded with distinction if a student fails any one module (excluding modules which were discontinued timeously).

Minimum credits: 128

SSC 780 compulsory module / verpligte module

Core modules

  • Module content:

    A research term paper will be prepared.

    The course will apply some of the basics theories and methodologies in statistics and operations research to solve common civil engineering problems. The course seeks to demonstrate the use and application in the civil engineering field. Each of the applications seeks to determine how best to design and operate a system, usually under conditions requiring the allocation of scarce resources.  Emphasis will be on the applications of these methods in common civil engineering practice. Some of the applications will include; optimum network design, maximum flow problem, project scheduling, queuing theory, probabilistic analysis, Markov chain applications, etc.

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  • Module content:

    *This is a compulsory module.

    The course will require all honours students to conduct research in an appropriate field of civil engineering, linked to the main discipline in which the student specializes for their honours degree.

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Elective modules

  • Module content:

    A research term paper will be prepared.

    Design philosophy in First and Third World environments; characterising and use of pavement materials; drainage; systems approach to layout, geometric and pavement design; stresses and strains in pavements; mechanistic design methods and elasto-plastic behaviour; economic analysis; designing pavements for streets, gravel and paved roads, runways, and industrial areas. Report writing.

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  • Module content:

    A research term paper will be prepared.

    Properties of concrete and concrete mixes. Characteristics of Portland cement and supplementary cementitious materials. Aggregates, admixtures and practical design of mixes. Manufacture, curing and testing, including non-destructive methods. Statistical approach to quality control. Time-dependent behaviour and durability of concrete. The principles for appropriate selection of materials and techniques for repair, maintenance and strengthening of civil engineering structures. Investigation and diagnosis. Corrosion of reinforcement. Alkali-aggregate reaction, sulphate attack. Physical degradation. Repair materials. Protective systems. Systems for repair.

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  • Module content:

    A research term paper will be prepared.

    Development of road management systems and application to existing street and road networks. Evaluation of, and measurements on existing facilities. Maintenance management. Recycling of materials. Design methods for upgrading, re-construction and strengthening of the existing road infrastructure. Prerequisite: Pavement Design SGC 793.

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  • Module content:

    In the first part of this course, numerical procedures and some underlying theory for solving systems of equations, eigenvalue problems, integration, approximation and boundary value problems will be discussed. The second part of the course covers general finite element theory, discretization aspects related to geometry, nodes and numbering, element type and shape, interpolation functions, formulation of element characteristic matrices and vectors for elasticity problems, assembly and solution of the finite element equations, modelling procedures and results processing. The student will use Finite Element software to apply the theory that was covered in the course for solving typical Civil Engineering problems.

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  • Module content:

    A research term paper will be prepared.

    This module will cover the following topics: Asset Management principles, Maintenance Management principles, Maintenance strategies and philosophies, Condition based Maintenance, Reliability Centred Maintenance (RCM), Resource Management, Maintenance Management Systems, Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) and Risk Management. Maintenance management of the following disciplines will be studied in detail: Road infrastructure, Railway infrastructure, Airport infrastructure, Buildings and other structures, Water resources and water supply.

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  • Module content:

    A research term paper will be prepared.

    Basic transportation relationships, land use, data collection and surveys. Four step transportation model, trip generation, trip distribution, modal split, trip assignment, advanced modelling approaches. Introduction to discrete choice models, econometrics, and stated preference analysis. Role of transport modelling in developmental context.

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  • Module content:

    A research term paper will be prepared.

    Basic transportation relationships, land use, data collection and surveys. Four step transportation model, trip generation, trip distribution, modal split, trip assignment, advanced modelling approaches. Introduction to discrete choice models, econometrics, and stated preference analysis. Role of transport modelling in developmental context.

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  • Module content:

    A research term paper will be prepared.

    Part 1: Traffic flow theory: Traffic and vehicle characteristics. Traffic flow studies. Traffic interactions. Traffic flow analysis and queuing theory. Traffic flow models. Traffic control theory. Part 2: Traffic studies and facility design: Transportation and land use. Traffic impact studies. Site planning and design. Determination of demand. Traffic control investigations. Intersection design. Internal circulation. Parking areas.

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The information published here is subject to change and may be amended after the publication of this information. The General Regulations (G Regulations) apply to all faculties of the University of Pretoria. It is expected of students to familiarise themselves well with these regulations as well as with the information contained in the General Rules section. Ignorance concerning these regulations and rules will not be accepted as an excuse for any transgression.

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