Traffic Operations and Management

Many medium and small-size metropolitan areas in the U.S. face increasing traffic problems similar to large metropolitan areas. These metropolitan areas have responded primarily by expanding their road network and capacity. This paper explores the possibility of using a HOT lane in a medium-size metropolitan area for the same purpose. A detailed analysis and a suggested HOT lane solution are prepared for Greensboro-Winston-Salem-High Point metropolitan area. While high congestion are not widespread in the region now, a highway corridor is identified based on forecasted high...

This paper proposes a discretionary lane selection algorithm. In particular, highway driving is considered as a targeted scenario, where each lane has a different level of traffic flow. When lane-changing is discretionary, it is advised not to change lanes unless highly beneficial, e.g., reducing travel time significantly or securing higher safety. Evaluating such “benefit” is a challenge, along with multiple surrounding vehicles in dynamic speed and heading with uncertainty. We propose a realtime lane-selection algorithm with careful cost considerations and with modularity in design. The...

Recent advances in traffic monitoring systems have made real-time traffic velocity data ubiquitously accessible for drivers. This paper develops a traffic data-enabled predictive energy management framework for a power-split plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV). Compared with conventional model predictive control (MPC), an additional supervisory state of charge (SoC) planning level is constructed based on real-time traffic data. A power balance-based PHEV model is developed for this upper level to rapidly generate battery SoC trajectories that are utilized as final-state constraints in...

The Freeway Service Patrol (FSP) is an incident management program implemented by Caltrans, the California Highway Patrol and local partner agencies to quickly detect and assist disabled vehicles and reduce non-recurring congestion along the freeway during peak commute hours. The first FSP program was piloted in Los Angeles, and was later expanded to other regions by state legislation in 1991. As of June 2016, there were fourteen participating FSP Programs operating in California, deploying over 340 tow trucks and covering over 1,800 (center-line) miles of congested California freeways....