Reliability-Based Traffic Signal Control for Urban Arterial Roads

Journal article (2016)

Authors

F. Zheng Southwest Jiaotong University
H.J. van Zuylen Transport and Planning - CEG
Xiaobo Liu Southwest Jiaotong University
Scott Le Vine Imperial College London
Research Group
Transport and Planning (CEG) (TU Delft)
Optimization Genetic algorithm Reliability Stochastic processes Traffic control Analytical models Standards Delays Computational modeling Signal optimization Travel-time reliability
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Published Date

2016

Language

English

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Faculty

Civil Engineering & Geosciences

Department

Transport and Planning

Research Group

Transport and Planning

Abstract

It is widely accepted that travelers value both the reliability of travel time and its mean or expected value. Strategies for traffic signal control typically seek to optimize average travel times, although reliability is in general not explicitly taken into account. In this paper, we propose a new framework for evaluating the consequences of signal-control tactics on both reliability and expected values of travel time, based on an analytic model of travel time distribution. A genetic-algorithm-based approach is then employed to identify optimal multicriteria signal control strategies, including sensitivity analysis, to the relative weighting between reliability and expected value. We expose the properties of the proposed framework via an empirical case study of four alternative optimization approaches (the signal setting optimized with the traditional Webster's method, TRANSYT model, and the newly proposed model) under various traffic conditions. Results indicate that the newly proposed framework outperforms the alternative signal control strategies in terms of both travel-time variability and expected travel time.