01473167

Component

Inclement weather conditions (such as rain, snow, fog and ice) can create hazardous driving circumstances, which affect the performance of transportation networks. This study analyzes how inclement weather affects hourly traffic volumes on freeways in Buffalo, New York by examining the impact of weather factors such as visibility, temperature, weather type, precipitation and wind speed. To do so, weather and traffic data was collected and modified to form a base case and an inclement weather case. By comparing the base case and inclement weather case several discoveries were made, including when the greatest volume reduction will occur and which weather factors affect the traffic volume. The modified volume and traffic data was also used to find a regression model that can predict traffic volume based on weather factors. The study shows that volumes for times during which inclement weather occurred were significantly lower than dry weather volumes, and that the difference was greatest during peak hours (7:00 AM to 9:00 AM, and 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM), with the volume reductions ranging from 13.3 to 33.9 percent. The study also demonstrated that among the different weather indicators considered, weather type and cumulative precipitation appear to be the most significant predictors of percent volume reductions.

This paper was sponsored by TRB committee AH010 Surface Transportation Weather.

01470560

13-3240

English

16p

2013

Transportation Research Board 92nd Annual Meeting

Digital/other

Figures; Photos; References; Tables

Peak hour traffic; Regression analysis; Traffic data; Traffic volume; Visibility; Weather conditions

Buffalo (New York)

Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning

Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting 2013 Paper #13-3240

PRP, TRIS, TRB, ATRI

Feb 5 2013 12:39PM