Using Spatial Analysis to Estimate Link Travel Times on Local Roads

Link travel times are not only an index of congestion, but also a key variable in route choice research and an important component of impedance functions in trip assignment models. Global Positioning System (GPS) devices are increasingly being used as probes to collect real-time travel time data but usually on main arterial roads. Limited research has focused on the estimation or transfer of travel times to links without GPS probe data. This research developed a systematic method to estimate link travel times for the entire road network including links with GPS probe data and links without. The model used sparse GPS probe data such as that which would be collected in a household travel survey using GPS. This paper investigates the feasibility of using the sparse GPS data to estimate link travel times for local road types with very little coverage relatively to others in the network. Categorization of road links based on time, day of week and other spatial characteristics was determined and link travel time estimation for the 4 categories of local roads with only 36.5% GPS coverage are the focus in this paper. A geostatistical Kriging model was employed for these link categories and the accuracy of the link-based results was similar to that found in previous models with more probe data (a percentage difference of 19.2% between the estimated link travel time and the observed link travel time on local roads was found).

• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Authors:
  • Aultman-Hall, Lisa
  • Du, Jianhe
• Conference:
  • Transportation Research Board 85th Annual Meeting
  • Location: Washington DC, United States
  • Date: 2006-1-22 to 2006-1-26
• Date: 2006

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: CD-ROM
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 23p
• Monograph Title: TRB 85th Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers CD-ROM

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Data collection; Estimating; Global Positioning System; Network links; Real time information; Route choice; Spatial analysis; Traffic congestion; Travel time
• Uncontrolled Terms: Dynamic trip assignment
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Planning and Forecasting; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01033658
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 06-0676
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Sep 29 2006 10:37AM