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21st Century Operations Using 21st Century Technologies

Traffic Analysis Toolbox Volume XIV: Guidebook on the Utilization of Dynamic Traffic Assignment in Modeling

A. DTA Applications

Phoenix Area DTA Model

A microsimulation-based DTA model was built for the City of Phoenix, Arizona, involving 2,000 traffic signals.

Morgan, D., Large-Scale Microscopic Simulation-Base Dynamic Traffic Assignment, presented at the 2012 DTA International Symposium, Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, June 2012 (accessed November 2012).

Eureka, California, DTA Model

A microsimulation-based DTA model was build for the City of Eureka, California. The model was used to study the traffic impacts of development and growth and to evaluate operational improvements.

Morgan, D., and D. Mayberry, A Methodology for Estimation and Calibration of a City-Wide Microsimulation Model, presented at the Third Transportation Research Board Conference on Innovations on Travel Modeling, Tempe, Arizona, May 2010 (accessed November 2012).

California State Route 1 DTA Model

A hybrid mesoscopic and microscopic DTA model was developed for a 45-mile stretch of the California State Route (SR) 1. The model was used to study the traffic diversions over a large area caused by various construction alternatives.

Fehon, K., K Sterner, and W. Michael, Macro-Meso-Micro Simulation Integration: The State Route 1 Corridor Approach, TRB Integrated Corridor Systems Management Conference, Irvine, California, September 2009 (accessed November 2012).

U.S. 101 Corridor DTA Model

A hybrid meso-microsimulation model was built for a 50-mile section of U.S. 101 in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties in California for analyzing corridor management plans.

Pravinvongvuth, S., and W. R. Loudon, Development of a Corridor System Management Plan Using a Hybrid Meso-Microsimulation Model, presented at the TRB Integrated Corridor Systems Management Conference, Irvine, California, September 2009 (accessed November 2012).

El Paso Loop 375 DTA Model

A multi-resolution model was built for State Highway Loop 375 in El Paso, Texas, and was used to evaluate time-dependent variable pricing for HOT lanes.

Shelton, J. A., and Y-C Chiu, A Multi-Resolution and Simulation Assignment Capability for Analyzing Time-Dependent Variable Pricing on High-Occupancy Toll Lanes, presented at the TRB Integrated Corridor Systems Management Conference, Irvine, California, September 2009 (accessed November 2012).

Minneapolis DTA Model

A DTA model was built for a Minneapolis corridor to test Integrated Corridor Management strategies, including dynamic pricing, signal retiming, and information provision about parking availability.

Chiu, Y. C., M. Hickman, L. Head, V. Papayannoulis, B. Kary, D Deeter, and A. Creek, Minneapolis Integrated Corridor Management Pioneer Site Concept and Strategy Modeling – Part 2: Analysis, Modeling and Simulation Innovations, presented at the TRB Integrated Corridor Systems Management Conference, Irvine, California, September 2009 (accessed November 2012).

Downtown Seattle DTA Model

A mesoscopic DTA model was built for downtown Seattle containing a few hundred signals and used for toll revenue estimation.

Wellander, C., M. Mahut, Y. Dehghani, A. Natzel, and M. Xyntarakis, Refining Toll Analyses through Use of DTA Modeling: the Alaskan Way Viaduct Project in Seattle, presented at the 2012 DTA International Symposium, Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, June 2012 (accessed November 2012).

Doyle Drive and Geary DTA Models, San Francisco, California

Two mesoscopic DTA models were built for the northwest portion of the San Francisco County. The models contained a few hundred signals and were used to evaluate construction staging and Bus Rapid Transit scenarios.

Sall, E., I. Juran, I., M. Xyntarakis, and M. Mahut, “Rapid Implementation and Validation of Dynamic Traffic Assignment,” presented at the Third Transportation Research Board Conference on Innovations on Travel Modeling, Tempe, Arizona, May 2010 (accessed November 2012).

Sall, E., M. Xyntarakis, and B. Charlton, “Easy Breezy Beautiful DTA Modeling of the Geary Boulevard Bus Rapid Transit Project – Was it Really That Simple?,” presented at the 13th TRB National Transportation Planning Applications Conference, Reno, Nevada, May 2011 (accessed November 2012).

San Francisco County DTA Model

A mesoscopic DTA model was built for the entire San Francisco County Area containing more than one thousand traffic signals. The model was used for analysis of congestion pricing and Bus Rapid Transit scenarios. Project reports and a code repository with useful scripts are available (accessed November 2012).

City of Bellevue, Washington, DTA Model

A mesoscopic DTA model was build for the city of Bellevue in the State of Washington. The following paper contains the calibration report and results from the sensitivity analysis.

Dong H., and J. Clark, Sensitivity Analysis on Dynameq: A View from Practice, presented at the 90th TRB Annual meeting, Washington, D.C., January 2011 (accessed November 2012).

Olympia, Washington, DTA Model

A mesoscopic DTA model was built for the City of Olympia, the capital of Washington State to model ITS and Transit Signal Priority strategies.

Janarthanan, N., and M-N. Shyu, Project Experience of a Dynameq Simulation Model: TRPC – Smart Corridors Project, presented at the 2010 EMME Users Conference, Montreal, Quebec, Canada (accessed November 2012).

Ljubljana, Slovenia, DTA Model

A regional mesoscopic DTA model was built for the City of Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, to study public transport related scenarios. More information is available (accessed November 2012).

City of Malmö, Sweden, DTA Model

A regional mesoscopic DTA model was built for the city of Malmo in Sweden to study highway and transit infrastructure projects. More information is available (accessed November 2012).

City of Portland, Oregon, DTA Model

A regional mesoscopic DTA model was built for the City of Portland, Oregon to be used for the MPO’s long-range planning needs. The presentation with more information is available (accessed November 2012).

Tel-Aviv, Israel, DTA Model

A regional mesoscopic DTA model was built for the city of Tel-Aviv in Israel consisting of 200 zones and 300 traffic signals. The presentation contains information about the network and the calibration statistics (accessed November 2012).

City of Montreal, Canada, DTA Model

A regional mesoscopic DTA model was built for the city of Montreal in Canada consisting of 400 zones and 600 signals. The presentation contains information about the network, calibration statistics, and methodology (accessed November 2012).

Houston, Texas DTA Model

A regional mesoscopic DTA model was built for the city of Houston, Texas. The following paper describes the methodology used for simulating vehicles and the technical challenges in building a mesoscopic model for millions of trips.

Lam C. P., C. Van Slyke, H. Wang, and C. Brown, Applying Mesoscopic Simulation to Evacuation Planning for the Houston Region, presented at the 12th Transportation Research Board National Transportation Planning Applications Conference, Houston, Texas, May 2009 (accessed November 2012).

Houston, Texas Mesoscopic Evacuation Model

A mesoscopic DTA model with thousands of zones was built for the City Houston in Texas and used to evaluate evacuation planning scenarios, such as contra-flow lanes and ramp closures. The following presentation discusses the technical challenges in building the model and provides network and demand statistics.

Lam C. P., C. Van Slyke, H. Wang, and C. Brown, Applying Meso-scopic Simulation to Evacuation Planning for the Houston Region, presented at the 12th Transportation Research Board National Transportation Planning Applications Conference, Houston, Texas, May 2009 (accessed at 2012).

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