How Merging Vehicles Choose and Approach Their Desired Merge Position in Congested Merge Area

The lane change process is a tactical process. However, the transitions among important tactical nodes are largely ignored in the existing microscopic lane change models. Prior to the lane change maneuver, the merging vehicles need to reach the feasible lane change location, (the desired merge position), which is right after the target gap selection. This study explores how the merging vehicle choose and approach the desired merge position in a congested merge area, which may trigger the understanding of the complex lane change behavior and help microscopic traffic flow modeling. This paper reports a fundamental work by classifying the merging vehicles into “targeting original gap” type and “targeting forward gap” type. The statistical analysis results indicate that these two types of merging vehicles have different selection behavior of desired merge location. The gap distance between putative leader (PL) and putative follower (PF), the vehicle type of PL and speed difference between merging vehicle and vehicles surrounding it have influence on the desired merge location selection of merging vehicles. To investigate how the merging vehicles approach their desired merge position, the speed synchronization and the acceleration behavior of the merging vehicles are analyzed in the approaching process. The results illustrate the acceleration behavior of the “taking forward gap” merging vehicles should be staged modeled depending on their location. Findings from this study could shed light on the interpretation of complex lane changing.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • This paper was sponsored by TRB committee AHB45 Traffic Flow Theory and Characteristics.
• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Authors:
  • Wan, Xia
  • Jin, Peter J
  • Yang, Fan
  • Ran, Bin
• Conference:
  • Transportation Research Board 93rd Annual Meeting
  • Location: Washington DC
  • Date: 2014-1-12 to 2014-1-16
• Date: 2014

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 16p
• Monograph Title: TRB 93rd Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Acceleration (Mechanics); Gap acceptance; Lane changing; Merging area; Merging traffic; Microscopic traffic flow
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; I71: Traffic Theory;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01506680
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 14-5685
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Feb 7 2014 11:53AM