01020301

Component

https://doi.org/10.3141/1959-09

http://scholar.google.com...ulos&publication_year=2006

Minnesota’s most recent stratified zone ramp metering (SZM) strategy, the successor of the ZONE metering algorithm, has been deployed in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area since late 2002. The SZM strategy is intended to maximize freeway throughput while keeping ramp waiting times below a predetermined threshold. Preliminary evaluation results confirmed the overall effectiveness of the SZM strategy but also revealed that the freeway performance was compromised by the restrictive maximum ramp waiting constraint. Consequently, improvements were sought. These focus on a better determination of the minimum release rate for each ramp and its integration with the overall SZM strategy. Both the current and the enhanced SZM strategies are tested in two freeway sites under various demand scenarios through a state-of-the-art microscopic simulator. The simulation results indicate that the enhanced SZM strategy is effective for delaying and decreasing the freeway congestion and results in smoother freeway traffic flow compared with the original SZM strategy without violating the maximum ramp delay requirement.

01036675

English

pp 77-83

2006

Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board

0309099684

Print

Figures (2) ; References (14) ; Tables (3)

Algorithms; Freeway operations; Highway traffic control; Microscopic traffic flow; Microsimulation; Ramp metering; Strategic planning; Traffic congestion; Traffic delays; Traffic flow; Traffic simulation; Waiting time

Maximum ramp delay requirement (Ramp metering); Minimum release rate (Ramp metering); Stratified zone metering; Traffic throughput

Minneapolis (Minnesota); Saint Paul (Minnesota)

Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; I71: Traffic Theory; I73: Traffic Control

TRIS, TRB, ATRI

Mar 3 2006 10:54AM

• Amber Alert and Major Catastrophe Messages on Dynamic Message Signs: Focus Group Studies in Texas
• Assessing Weather, Environment, and Loop Data for Real-Time Freeway Incident Prediction
• Automated Adaptive Traffic Corridor Control Using Reinforcement Learning: Approach and Case Studies
• Components of Congestion: Delay from Incidents, Special Events, Lane Closures, Weather, Potential Ramp Metering Gain, and Excess Demand
• Comprehensive Evaluation of New Integrated Freeway Ramp Control Strategy
• Developments and Applications of Simulation-Based Online Travel Time Prediction System: Traveling to Ocean City, Maryland
• Estimation of Incident Delay and Its Uncertainty on Freeway Networks
• Feasibility Assessment of Metropolitan High-Occupancy Toll Lane Network in Atlanta, Georgia
• Flashing Message Features on Changeable Message Signs
• Operational Effect of Single-Occupant Hybrid Vehicles in High-Occupancy Vehicle Lanes
• Real-Time Estimation of Critical Occupancy for Maximum Motorway Throughput
• Safety Evaluation of Buffer-Separated High-Occupancy Vehicle Lanes in Texas
• Set of New Traffic-Responsive Ramp-Metering Algorithms and Microscopic Simulation Results
• Transportation and Emergency Services: Identifying Critical Interfaces, Obstacles, and Opportunities
• Using Real-Life Dual-Loop Detector Data to Develop New Methodology for Estimating Freeway Travel Time Reliability
• Using Risk Analysis to Prioritize Intelligent Transport Systems: Variable Message Sign Case Study in Gold Coast City, Australia
• Validating Dynamic Message Sign Freeway Travel Time Messages with Ground Truth Geospatial Data
• Video Incident Detection Tests in Freeway Tunnels