ABSTRACT: The environmental conditions of urban areas are directly affected by the operation in their road intersections and by the amount of vehicles and its dispersion throughout the day. To measure these conditions, the present study aims to propose a Traffic Quality Index (TQI) applicable to urban intersections and for comparing traffic performance, bringing a comprehensive methodology about the parameters involved in intersection quality. To prepare the TQI, it was used the Delphi methodology, through opinion of traffic experts. The results supported the selection of a group containing five parameters, namely: delay per vehicle; stops per vehicle; average speed; fuel efficiency and queue size. The formulation of the TQI has been established based on the values of parameters scored and their respective weights and evaluated for use of sum or product. Aiming at its validation, the TQI was applied to four intersections (two of them nonsignalized and the other two signalized), simulated by Synchro Studio 9 software, and the results were compared with those obtained by the HCM (Highway Capacity Manual) and ICU (Intersection Capacity Utilization). It was found that the TQI product is more sensitive to roads changes and is a tool to assist the development and evaluation of urban road design and traffic planning, and that its use is complementary to the HCM and ICU methodologies.
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