EFFECTS OF OPERATING ULTRA LONG TRUCKS ON THE LEVEL OF SERVICE AT WEAVING SECTIONS OF MOTORWAYS

Trucks are often critized for their effects on highway congestion and safety issues. However, rapid increase of freight demand justifies using heavy and long trucks, namely ultra long trucks (ULTs). If these trucks are admitted on motorways, the first ideas expect a decrease of the level of service especially at weaving sections of motorways where lane changing happens. The findings of this paper indicate that a considerable decrease in the level of service at weaving sections would not occur. This result is reliable, especially at normal rates of heavy vehicles on the weaving section areas (less than 30%). If the maximum allowable length for ULTs is equivalent to 25.25 m then the decrease of speed of weaving and non-weaving traffic would be limited to less than 3 km/h. The results also indicate that in usual conditions, namely less than 15% heavy vehicles in traffic, the minimum required length of the weaving section that is to be provided at present must be increased up to 100 m. The additional length ensures a stable level of service. (A) For the covering abstract of the conference see ITRD E206312.

• Corporate Authors:

  Colloguium Vervoersplanologisch Speurwerk

  P.O. Box 45
  Delft,   Netherlands 
• Authors:
  • TABIBI, M
  • HANSEN, IIA
• Conference:
  • 27STE COLLOQUIUM VERVOERSPLANOLOGISCH SPEURWERK 2000: WIE BETAALT BEPAALT!: BUNDELING VAN BIJDRAGEN AAN HET COLLOQUIUM GEHOUDEN TE AMSTERDAM, 30 NOVEMBER EN 1 DECEMBER 2000. DEEL 2
• Publication Date: 2000

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: References;
• Pagination: p. 793-807

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Conferences; Freeways; Length; Merging traffic; Size; Speed; Traffic flow; Traffic lanes; Trucks
• Geographic Terms: Netherlands
• ITRD Terms: 8525: Conference; 9014: Dimension; 6488: Length; 1236: Lorry; 647: Merging traffic; 2752: Motorway; 8078: Netherlands; 5408: Speed; 671: Traffic flow; 2827: Traffic lane
• Subject Areas: Data and Information Technology; Motor Carriers; Operations and Traffic Management;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00920537
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Institute for Road Safety Research, SWOV
• Files: ITRD
• Created Date: Mar 6 2002 12:00AM