June 14th, 2006

Henk Taale

Regional Traffic Management

Method and Tool

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Contents

• Dutch traffic and transport policy• Traffic management• Sustainable traffic management• Regional Traffic Management Explorer

– Functionality– Development– Case studies– Next steps

• Summary

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Mobility in The Netherlands

• 16.2 million inhabitants• 3.1 trip per person per

day• 32 km per person per

day• 1 hour per person per

day• 6.9 million cars

• 16 million trips per car• 250 million car km per

day• 120 congestion locations• Average length 3.2 km• Average duration 65

minutes

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Building: “very effective, expensive, long”

Pricing: “politically difficult”

Traffic Management: “effective, less expensive and quick”

Traffic and Transport Policy

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Traffic Management Long Ago

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Traffic Management 21st Century

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Traffic Management Measures

Measure Number Kilometres

Planning 2005-2009

1 Motorway Traffic Management System

997 61

2 Speed Measures (80 km/hr zones) 5 40

3 Ramp Metering 44 16

4 Overtaking prohibition trucks 2441

5 Peak lanes (using hard shoulder) 95 463

6 Buslanes, trucklanes, tidal flow lanes 38 101 4/13

7 Measures for Road Works

8 Traffic Signal Control ±150

9 Other measures

10 Incident Management (camera’s) 53 99

11 Dynamic Route Information Panels (VMS)

119 22

12 Radio Traffic Information 865 547

Control InformIncident Management

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Evaluation studies

Measure Measurements

Behaviour

Estimate

Number

Period

1 Motorway Traffic Management System

√ √ 8 1983-2000

2 Speed Measures (80 km/hr zones) √ 7 1983-2003

3 Ramp Metering √ 15 1990-2005

4 Overtaking prohibition trucks √ √ 8 1993-2003

5 Peak lanes (using hard shoulder) √ √ 6 1996-2003

6 Buslanes, trucklanes, tidal flow lanes √ √ 4 1991-1996

7 Measures for Road Works √ √ 3 2001-2004

8 Traffic Signal Control √ 9 1987-2004

9 Other measures √ √ 11 1992-2004

10 Incident Management (camera’s) √ √ √ 6 1995-2005

11 Dynamic Route Information Panels (VMS)

√ √ 15 1993-2005

12 Radio Traffic Information √ 9 2000-2005

13 Traffic Management Program √ √ 3 2001-2006

Control InformIncident Management

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Overview important impacts

Measure Effect on traffic Effect capacity

1 Motorway Traffic Management System

Flow improvements 0%- 5% 0% to 5%

2 Speed Measures (80 km/hr zones) Congestion varies from -40% to +50% –9% to +4%

3 Ramp Metering 0% to +5%

4 Overtaking prohibition trucks Different per location –4% to +4%

5 Peak lanes (using hard shoulder) Decrease travel times from 1 to 3 minutesExtra traffic from 0% to +7%

+7% to +22%

6 Bus lanes, truck lanes, tidal flow lanes

Travel time busses/trucks –14 minutesTravel time other traffic from –5 to +2 minutes

7 Measures for Road Works Less demand, sometimes to –11%Less traffic on the section with road works: to –38%

8 Traffic Signal Control Change in travel times from –33% to +10%

9 Other measures Congestion from –28% to +45%

10 Incident Management (camera’s) Congestion –7% (Utrecht)

11 Dynamic Route Information Panels (VMS)

Congestion from –7% to –30%

12 Radio Traffic Information Route changes, more change if travellers are informed individually

Control InformIncident Management

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Investment and Effects of ITS

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Next Steps

• More investments and better ITS not the fundamental solution

• From technique to result oriented approach

Technical developmentFirst measures are explored

Application

Measures are applied at multiple locations

Result

Measures are coordinated throughout the network

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Good Traffic Management is …

take decisionstake decisions

1 make a good start!

know what you want to achieveknow what you want to achieve

know what is happeningknow what is happening

come up with solutionscome up with solutions

4 formulate reference values

3 draw agreed collective policy on a map

2 know what you want to achieve together (prioritise)

6 spot conflicts

5 picture actual situation

8 formulate measures

7 formulate solution directions

9 take decisions

put decisions into practiceput decisions into practice

12 operational traffic management

11 prepare use of measures

10 implement measures

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Nine Steps

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Handbook Sustainable Traffic Management

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Applications

• Some 40 projects in progress

• From ‘just started’ to ‘completed’

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From a Traffic Control Strategy …

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… to Operational Management

“Delay here = free

flow ahead”

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Regional Traffic Management Explorer

• Sketch planning and modelling tool• Facilitate process of sustainable traffic

management (STM)• Quantify benefits of services and

measures• Simple and fast model for networks

(motorways, rural roads and urban streets)

• Compare different scenarios• National tool, independent of consultant

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Structure RTME

OmniTRANS user

interface

RTME

plug-in

Dynamic Assignment

model(MARPLE)

Input network and OD matrix

from other model

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Functionality RTME (1)

• Use of modelling input for control strategy and frame of reference

• Current situation, bottlenecks and effects of services and measures are simulated with a dynamic model

• All results are presented based on the indicators chosen in the frame of reference

• Results:– Travel time and delay per OD pair– Travel time and delay per route– Speed and flows per road section or route

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Functionality RTME (2)

• Routes can be defined• Bottlenecks are presented with respect to

the actual situation or the frame of reference

• Effects of scenario can be compared with the actual situation, frame of reference or other scenario

• Applicable in regional and urban networks• Traffic signal control• Can be applied in workshops and back-

office

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Dynamic Traffic Assignment Model

• Model for Assignment and Regional PoLicy Evaluation (MARPLE)

• Developed during PhD research on the interaction between traffic control and route choice behaviour

• Based on realistic travel time functions, also for controlled links, roundabouts and priority

• Route choice for predefined routes (deterministic and stochastic)

• Traffic flows through the network based on capacities of links and nodes (blocking-back)

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Screenshot RTME

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Case Studies for Testing

• Development RTME started in 2003• June 2004 first version ready for testing• 9 consultants: test RTME for 9 regions

– Model testing– Learning process for consultants– RTME input for 9 regions

• Version 1.0 ready end of October 2004

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Regional Networks

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Case Heerenveen-Skarsterlân

A6

A7

A7

A32

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Policy Objectives

• Accessibility– Good external accessibility of the northern and western part

of The Netherlands using the A6 and A7 motorways– Guarantee accessibility of the region Heerenveen-

Skarsterlân from the western and northern part of The Netherlands

– Guarantee accessibility from towns to the main road network

– Improve the flow in the city centres Joure and Heerenveen– Maintain and improve current quality of public transport

services wherever it is possible

• Safety– Improvement of traffic safety on all types of roads– No through traffic through residential areas

• Liveability– Improvement of the use of public transport and bicycle

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Control Strategy

Through traffic

Regional

traffic

Local traffic

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Frame of Reference

• Priority 1 relations: delay should not exceed 20% of the free flow travel time

• Priority 2 relations: delay should not exceed 30% of the free flow travel time.

• Priority 3 relations: delay should not exceed 10 minutes or 40% of the free flow travel time (if the free flow travel time > 20 minutes).

• For priority 3 or lower roads: volume should not exceed 5000 veh/24 hrs and the speed should be at least 40% of the allowed speed.

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Current Situation

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Bottlenecks

UndefinedLowMiddleHigh

A6

A7

A7

A32

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Beperken van instroom Bevorderen van in/uitstroom Herverdelen van capaciteit Maximaliseren capaciteit bottleneck

Services

Limit the inflow

Increase in/outflow

Redistribute capacity

Maximise capacity

bottleneck

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Measures

Snelheidsdeken (regionaal) Spitsstrook Aanpassen VRI’s bij aansluiting

Speed regime (regional)

Peak hour lane

Adjustment traffic signal control

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Effects

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Next Steps

• More regions initiate the STM process and using the RTME

• Also used for planning projects for Rijkswaterstaat: one corporate tool

• Extension with indicators for safety and environmental issues

• Extension for road works• Model adjustments

– Automatic calibration– Freight transport

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Summary

• Traffic management is essential part of Dutch traffic and transport policy

• Shift from technique to result oriented• Handbook ‘Sustainable Traffic

Management’ structures process to come to operational traffic management

• Regional Traffic Management Explorer is an essential tool to support this process

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Colophon

Henk TaaleRijkswaterstaatAVV Transport Research CentreE-mail: h.taale@avv.rws.minvenw.nl

Pictures: Rijkswaterstaat