How Many Times Should I Run the Model? Performance Measure Specific Findings from VISSIM Models in Missouri

Engineering practitioners using Vissim simulation software to evaluate transportation facilities have limited guidance from most state Departments of Transportation (DOTs). To address some of this need, this study investigated the appropriate minimum number of Vissim model runs specific to various performance measures. The methods included a thorough review of published studies and government guidelines, and an analysis of 16 Vissim models that were accepted to represent driver behavior in different parts of Missouri. This study identified that the number of simulation runs for 95-percent confidence, depends on the performance measure chosen. The findings suggested that models measuring only freeway travel times were found to require very few runs; models evaluating system wide metrics such as average vehicle speeds or vehicle hours traveled were found to need at least 5 runs; models measuring arterial travel times or total delay were found to require 10 or more runs; and those measuring total vehicle stops or total intersection delay required the largest minimum number of model runs. Overall, these findings provide a step towards establishing traffic simulation protocol for additional state DOTs and other transportation agencies.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • This paper was sponsored by TRB committee ADB30 Standing Committee on Transportation Network Modeling.
• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Authors:
  • Fries, Ryan
  • Qi, Yan
  • Leight, Shawn
• Conference:
  • Transportation Research Board 96th Annual Meeting
  • Location: Washington DC, United States
  • Date: 2017-1-8 to 2017-1-12
• Date: 2017

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 16p
• Monograph Title: TRB 96th Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Arterial highways; Average travel speed; Performance measurement; Traffic delays; Traffic models; Traffic simulation; Travel time
• Identifier Terms: VISSIM (Computer model)
• Geographic Terms: Missouri
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01622725
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 17-00470
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Jan 19 2017 9:12AM