Traffic Operations and Management

Urban Air Mobility (UAM) is an emerging concept of air transportation where small package delivery drones to passenger-carrying air taxis operate over populated areas, from small towns to the largest cities are being considered. This could revolutionize the way people move within and around cities by shortening commute times, bypassing ground congestion, and enabling point-to-point flights across cities. In recent years, several companies have designed and tested enabling elements of this concept, including; prototypes of Vertical Take-Off Landing (VTOL) capable vehicles, operational...

Approaches for evaluating the quality of bicycling have become increasingly important for planning bicycle infrastructure improvements. Mekuria, Furth, and Nixon’s (2012) “Level of Traffic Stress” (LTS) approach, which requires minimal data inputs and produces a simple and intuitive output, has emerged as a widely-used framework for identifying streets that are “low-stress” for cyclists. The LTS framework is based on a hierarchy of characteristics, largely related to traffic speed and roadway layout, that are presumed to cause higher or lower levels of stress. Despite the apparent...

High traffic congestion and travel times in the cities of Latin America and the Caribbean have significant impacts on air quality, population health, and well-being. To address these challenges, policy and infrastructure innovations have been proposed and implemented over recent decades. This chapter reviews the current state of mobility and accessibility in the region, with special attention to innovative practices and their impacts on accessibility, especially for low-income populations. Specifically, bus rapid transit and aerial tram infrastructure as well as policy innovations such as...

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...