CASE STUDIES OF FREEWAY-TO-FREEWAY RAMP AND MAINLINE METERING IN THE U.S., AND SUGGESTED POLICIES FOR WASHINGTON STATE

Over the past few decades, traffic patterns have changed dramatically as commuters have moved farther and farther away from central business districts and into the suburbs in search of, among other things, affordable single family housing. This trend has contributed to the increase in suburban traffic congestion and has also resulted in longer commutes and an increase in total highway miles traveled. To mitigate the increasing congestion and to improve highway safety, state departments of transportation have come up with some innovative strategies for optimizing the efficiency of congested freeway sections. Two such strategies are freeway-to-freeway ramp metering and mainline metering. Freeway-to-freeway ramp metering consists of installing traffic signals (either on the side of the roadway or overhead) on the ramps found at freeway-to-freeway interchanges. Mainline metering consists of installing traffic signals (usually overhead) on the mainline of a freeway. This report discusses the operational success of a number of freeway-to-freeway ramp and mainline metering systems currently installed around the country. Policies and guidelines concerning the installation and operation of freeway-to-freeway ramp meters and mainline meters for Washington State are suggested.

• Corporate Authors:

  Washington State Department of Transportation

  Transportation Building, 310 Maple Park Avenue SE, P.O. Box 47300
  Olympia, WA  United States  98504-7300

  Federal Highway Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Jacobson, E L
  • Landsman, J
• Publication Date: 1993-6

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Figures;
• Pagination: 23 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Case studies; Guidelines; Highway safety; Mainline metering; Operations; Policy; Suburbs; Traffic congestion; Traffic mitigation
• Uncontrolled Terms: Mitigation
• Geographic Terms: Washington (State)
• Old TRIS Terms: Operational effectiveness
• Subject Areas: Administration and Management; Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Policy; I73: Traffic Control;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00638823
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, USDOT, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Nov 18 1993 12:00AM