Evaluation of the Dynamic Lane Management System at the SR-110 North / I-5 North Connector Ramp Using Paramics and TOPL

This project evaluates the operational and safety benefits obtained from a dynamic lane management system. The number of lanes on an SR 110 connector was reduced from two to one to reduce collisions occurring at its entrance, where a sharp curves with low visibility forces traffic to slow down to 30-mph. To alleviate long queues on SR 110 while containing the impacts on safety, a system opening the connector's shoulder lane between 15:00 and 19:00 was activated. Evaluations used PeMS data, video recordings, travel time runs, simulation results from a Paramics microscopic modeling of the corridor, and collision records from the California Department of Transportation. Unique traffic behavior along SR-110 prevented evaluations to be conducted with the TOPL (Tools for Operational Planning) macroscopic simulation models. Evaluations revealed that between 15% and 38% of vehicles traveling on the connector illegally utilize the shoulder lane at its entrance when it is closed as a result of traffic demand exceeding the entry capacity. While the non-complying behavior was assessed to significantly reduce delays along the corridor independently of the dynamic lane management system, the simulation results indicate that operational benefits are still obtained from the system. Relatively small benefits would be obtained, however, from enabling a dynamic opening and closing of the connector shoulder lane based on the observed traffic conditions. From a safety standpoint, collision records indicate that while the current system has increased the frequency of collisions at the entrance of the connector it has also resulted in a greater reduction of collisions upstream, thus yielding overall net safety benefits.

Language

  • English

Media Info

  • Media Type: Digital/other
  • Edition: Final Report
  • Features: Figures; References; Tables;
  • Pagination: 105p
  • Serial:

Subject/Index Terms

Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 01548764
  • Record Type: Publication
  • Source Agency: UC Berkeley Transportation Library
  • Report/Paper Numbers: UCB-ITS-PRR-2012-1
  • Contract Numbers: 51A0391
  • Files: CALTRANS, TRIS, ATRI, STATEDOT
  • Created Date: Dec 23 2014 4:08PM