Probe-Based Arterial Performance Measures Validation

Many departments of transportation have implemented highway traffic performance measures such as Planning Time Index (PTI) and Travel Time Index (TTI) for their freeway system using probe-based global positioning system (GPS) traffic data provided by the private sector. Some are attempting to implement similar program on their system of interrupted flow arterials. Other practitioners rely on more established performances measures such as level of service as defined by the Highway Capacity Manual (HCM) for signals and segments. The latter provides granular performance measures on a signal and segment basis, but does not reflect quality of corridor flow. Also the HCM measures are predicated on data which is sensor-based, which can be expensive to maintain and aggregate. This paper examines the feasibility of using commercial GPS probe data both from an accuracy perspective, as well as the adaptability of traditional highway performance measures such as TTI and PTI to interrupted flow arterials. The analysis is based on case studies drawn from the I-95 Corridor Coalition’s Vehicle Probe Project (VPP) using Bluetooth traffic monitoring (BTM) to the validate probe data. The analysis directly calculates several common performance metrics from both data sources as well as investigates percentile based representation of traffic flow. Percentile-based travel time visualizations based on sample data from both sources are presented as a tool to researchers and practitioners to visually examine the fidelity of VPP data in contrast to BTM data as well as to quickly assess the state of flow using either data source.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • This paper was sponsored by TRB committee ABJ30 Urban Transportation Data and Information Systems.
• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Authors:
  • Juster, Reuben M
  • Young, Stanley E
  • Sharifi, Elham
• Conference:
  • Transportation Research Board 94th Annual Meeting
  • Location: Washington DC, United States
  • Date: 2015-1-11 to 2015-1-15
• Date: 2015

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 15p
• Monograph Title: TRB 94th Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Arterial highways; Bluetooth technology; Case studies; Feasibility analysis; Global Positioning System; Performance measurement; Traffic flow; Traffic surveillance; Travel time; Validation
• Identifier Terms: Interstate 95; Vehicle Probe Project
• Subject Areas: Highways; Planning and Forecasting; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01558246
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 15-5462
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Mar 30 2015 9:35AM