A Planning Tool for Active Traffic Management Combining Microsimulation and Dynamic Traffic Assignment
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
TECHNICAL REPORT 0-6859-1 TxDOT PROJECT NUMBER 0-6859 A Planning Tool for Active Traffic Management Combining Microsimulation and Dynamic Traffic Assignment Stephen D. Boyles C. Michael Walton Jennifer Duthie Ehsan Jafari Nan Jiang Alireza Khani Jia Li Jesus Osorio Venktesh Pandey Tarun Rambha Cesar Yahia April 2017; Published September 2018 http://library.ctr.utexas.edu/ctr-publications/0-6859-1.pdf Technical Report Documentation Page 1. Report No. 2. Government 3. Recipient’s Catalog No. FHWA/TX-17/0-6859-1 Accession No. 4. Title and Subtitle 5. Report Date A Planning Tool for Active Traffic Management Combining April 2017; Published September 2018 Microsimulation and Dynamic Traffic Assignment (FHWA 0- 6. Performing Organization Code 6859-1) 7. Author(s) 8. Performing Organization Report No. Stephen D. Boyles, C. Michael Walton, Jennifer Duthie, Ehsan 0-6859-1 Jafari, Nan Jiang, Alireza Khani, Jia Li, Jesus Osorio, Venktesh Pandey, Tarun Rambha, Cesar Yahia 9. Performing Organization Name and Address 10. Work Unit No. (TRAIS) Center for Transportation Research 11. Contract or Grant No. The University of Texas at Austin 0-6859 1616 Guadalupe Street, Suite 4.202 Austin, TX 78701 12. Sponsoring Agency Name and Address 13. Type of Report and Period Covered Texas Department of Transportation Technical Report, 9/1/14-4/30/17 Research and Technology Implementation Office 14. Sponsoring Agency Code P.O. Box 5080 Austin, TX 78763-5080 15. Supplementary Notes Project performed in cooperation with the Texas Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration. 16. Abstract Active traffic management (ATM) strategies have been considered as a tool for congestion mitigation in the last few decades. They rely on real-time traffic observations to regulate the flow of traffic. This research focuses on developing tools for evaluating the effectiveness of ATM strategies for freeway corridors. The research efforts can be categorized into two parts. The first part performs a detailed microsimulation analysis for four ATM strategies commenting on their effectiveness under cases of recurring and non-recurring congestion and develops a hybrid microsimulation-DTA model to capture the combined microscopic and network-level impacts of an ATM strategy. The second part develops spreadsheet tools which are useful to predict effectiveness of an ATM strategy under different levels of data availability. Ramp metering, variable speed limits, and hard shoulder running are found effective on the Williamson County test network, whereas dynamic ramp control and freeway arterial coordinated operations do not lead to any significant improvement. We also find that ATM strategies can improve the performance over a corridor while simultaneously reducing the performance of frontage roads due to spillover effects. Our findings also indicate that a hybrid microsimulation-DTA model is useful for an accurate analysis. However, based on the network characteristics, changes in route choice patterns may/may not be significant. The regression models used in the spreadsheet tool in the second part provide a good fit to the simulation results and thus can be used as an initial tool for testing effectiveness of ATM strategies during planning stage. 17. Key Words 18. Distribution Statement Active traffic management, dynamic traffic No restrictions. This document is available to the assignment, microsimulation public through the National Technical Information Service, Springfield, Virginia 22161; www.ntis.gov. 19. Security Classif. (of report) 20. Security Classif. (of this page) 21. No. of pages 22. Price Unclassified Unclassified 146 Form DOT F 1700.7 (8-72) Reproduction of completed page authorized A Planning Tool for Active Traffic Management Combining Microsimulation and Dynamic Traffic Assignment Stephen D. Boyles C. Michael Walton Jennifer Duthie Ehsan Jafari Nan Jiang Alireza Khani Jia Li Jesus Osorio Venktesh Pandey Tarun Rambha Cesar Yahia CTR Technical Report: 0-6859-1 Report Date: April 2017; Published September 2018 Project: 0-6859 Project Title: Operational Analysis of Active Traffic Management Strategies Sponsoring Agency: Texas Department of Transportation Performing Agency: Center for Transportation Research at The University of Texas at Austin Project performed in cooperation with the Texas Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration. Center for Transportation Research The University of Texas at Austin 3925 W. Braker Lane Austin, TX 78759 http://ctr.utexas.edu/ iv Disclaimers Author's Disclaimer: The contents of this report reflect the views of the authors, who are responsible for the facts and the accuracy of the data presented herein. The contents do not necessarily reflect the official view or policies of the Federal Highway Administration or the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). This report does not constitute a standard, specification, or regulation. Patent Disclaimer: There was no invention or discovery conceived or first actually reduced to practice in the course of or under this contract, including any art, method, process, machine manufacture, design or composition of matter, or any new useful improvement thereof, or any variety of plant, which is or may be patentable under the patent laws of the United States of America or any foreign country. Notice: The United States Government and the State of Texas do not endorse products or manufacturers. If trade or manufacturers' names appear herein, it is solely because they are considered essential to the object of this report. Engineering Disclaimer NOT INTENDED FOR CONSTRUCTION, BIDDING, OR PERMIT PURPOSES. v Acknowledgments The authors express appreciation to the Project Manager, Wade Odell, for providing guidance throughout the project and for coordinating review of documents and update meetings with the Project Monitoring Committee, including Mohammad Al Hweil, Brian Burk, Ron Fuessel, Joseph Hunt, Charles Koonce III, Michael Pietrzyk, and David Rodrigues. Their input has been invaluable. The authors also thank the CTR staff who assisted with document preparation and project management, particularly Maureen Kelly and Ashley Savage Williams. vi Table of Contents Executive Summary ................................................................................................................... xvi Chapter 1. Introduction................................................................................................................ 1 1.1 Overview ................................................................................................................................1 1.2 Report Organization ...............................................................................................................2 Chapter 2. Literature Review ...................................................................................................... 3 2.1 Speed Harmonization .............................................................................................................5 2.2 Ramp Metering ......................................................................................................................7 2.3 Dynamic Temporary Shoulder Lane ......................................................................................8 2.4 Queue Warning ......................................................................................................................9 2.5 Coordinated Freeway-Arterial Operations ...........................................................................10 2.6 Dynamic Lane-Use Control .................................................................................................11 2.7 Dynamic Route Guidance/Signing/VMS .............................................................................11 2.8 Truck Restrictions ................................................................................................................13 2.9 Mainline Gap Metering ........................................................................................................13 2.10 Construction Site Management ..........................................................................................14 2.11 Transit Signal Priority ........................................................................................................14 2.12 Summary ............................................................................................................................15 Chapter 3. Identifying Potential ATM Strategies for Texas ................................................... 16 3.1 Existing ATM Deployment in Texas ...................................................................................16 3.2 Qualitative Evaluation of ATM Strategies ..........................................................................16 3.3 Testbed for Simulation Study ..............................................................................................19 3.3.1 Williamson County Network ....................................................................................... 19 3.3.2 Available Data ............................................................................................................. 20 Chapter 4. Analysis Based on Micro-Simulation ..................................................................... 22 4.1 COM-based Microscopic Simulation Framework ...............................................................22 4.1.1 Overview of Micro-Simulators ...................................................................................