THE IMPORTANCE OF STOPS IN TRAFFIC SIGNAL PROGRESSIONS

THE RELATIVE TIMINGS OF TRAFFIC SIGNALS TO ENSURE OPTIMUM PROGRESSION OF PLATOONS OF VEHICLES IN A ROAD NETWORK ARE DISCUSSED. PREVIOUS WORK HAS DESCRIBED MEANS OF PRODUCING SUCH PROGRESSION WHICH EITHER MAXIMIZE THE TIME FOR WHICH A PARTICULAR TRAFFIC FLOW WILL NOT BE STOPPED (BANDWIDTH) OR MINIMIZE THE DELAY TO ALL TRAFFIC. A SHORT DESCRIPTION IS GIVEN OF A COMPUTER PROGRAM BASED ON MINIMIZING DELAY. A NEW PARAMETER, STOP PENALTY, IS INCLUDED IN THE PROGRAM TO ACHIEVE AN APPROACH TO MAXIMUM BANDWIDTH WHILE STILL ALLOWING FOR VARYING STREET WIDTH AND A VARITY OF NETWORKS. AN ANALYSIS IS MADE OF THE EFFECT OF STOP PENALTY AND ITS INTERACTION WITH CYCLE TIME, TRAVEL TIME BETWEEN SIGNALS, AND THE COMPLEXITY OF THE NETWORK. FOR SINGLE JUNCTIONS AN ANALYTICAL APPROACH SHOWS THE SIMILARITY BETWEEN STOP PENALTY AND EXTENDED INTERGREEN TIMES. FOR MORE COMPLEX NETWORKS, THE COMPUTER PROGRAM HAS BEEN USED TO ANALYZE AN ARTERIAL ROAD AND A CLOSED LOOP IN A NETWORK. THIS ANALYSIS SHOWS HOW NETWORKS VARY IN SENSITIVITY TO STOP PENALTY AND HOW THE INCLUSION OF STOP PENALTY DISCOURAGES THE SELECTION OF PROGRESSIONS IN WHICH THE HEADS OF TRAFFIC PLATOONS ARE STOPPED AT THE SIGNALS. /AUTHOR/

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Vol 3, pp 143-150
• Authors:
  • Huddart, K W
• Publication Date: 1969

Media Info

• Serial:
  • Transportation Research /UK/
  • Volume: 3
  • Issue Number: 2
  • Publisher: Pergamon Press, Incorporated

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Computer programs; Minimization; Optimization; Stopped time delays; Traffic delays; Traffic flow; Traffic platooning; Traffic signal control systems; Traffic signal timing
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00227229
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Traffic Systems Reviews & Abstracts
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: May 13 1970 12:00AM