1. Corridor Management Demonstration
This project aims to develop a template for corridor system management plans that can be used for both planning and operational analysis. The primary objective of Corridor Management Demonstration project is to improve traditional corridor management planning by incorporating detailed, multi-modal performance measurement and evaluation, and innovative micro-simulation modeling techniques. The template will help to address the problem of lost system productivity during congestion; it will also help to create effective corridor management plans, thus improving statewide transportation mobility, safety and productivity. The project represents the first attempt by the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) to develop phased and integrated corridor system management strategies by incorporating state-of-the-art operational analysis into more traditional transportation planning processes. Three corridors, including SR-41 in Fresno, I-880 in Bay Area, and I-5 in Orange County, were selected for concept demonstration and the template development.
I-880 network is an important freeway corridor that serves the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, the Port of Oakland and Silicon Valley. The I-880 network being modeled includes a 37-mile long freeway corridor and its major parallel streets. There are a total of 163 actuated signals, 20 fixed-time signals, and 55 traffic-responsive ramp meters.
Three corridors, including SR-41 in Fresno, I-880 in Bay Area, and I-5 in Orange County, were selected for concept demonstration and the template development.
I-5 network being modeled is a 30-mile long freeway corridor with major parallel streets. The final I-5 simulation model includes about 140 actuated signals and 50 ramp meters.
The performance of the corridor was analyzed and major bottlenecks were identified. Using traffic data collected from the field and planning models from planning agencies,dynamic OD tables were estimated for these three models. Then, these three models were calibrated and validated against observed baseline traffic condition. The calibrated models are finally being used to evaluate short-term operational improvement and major capital investment in 2010 and 2025.
2. Alameda County Congestion Management Agency (ACCMA) Central Freeway Operations Analysis
This project aims to help Alameda County Congestion Management Association (ACCMA) to prioritize the funding priority of future project scenarios in central Alameda
County, California. The study site includes 11-mile I-880 from Alvarado Niles Rd to Davis St., 8-mile I-580 from Palo Verde Rd to SR-238 and the whole section of SR-238.
The Paramics microsimulation model was coded for the two freeway corridors (I-880, and I-238/I-580), as shown in the figure below. The model was validated against traffic counts and probe vehicle speed/travel time data. The baseline, short range (2015) and long range (2030) AM and PM peak 4-hour OD tables are obtained from the ACCMA planning model. Measures of effectiveness were identified for evaluating the corridors’ traffic performance. The Paramics model was then run for 2015 and 2030 to generate future baseline MOE’s for use in assessing future performance, identifying problems, and developing mitigations. The model will be used to test 5 different strategies for addressing the problems identified in the baseline future forecasts.
Dowling Associates is responsible for the traffic forecasting, simulation, and operations analysis. As a subconsultant to Dowling Associates, CLR Analytics Inc helps
Dowling Associates to conduct Paramics traffic simulation for the study site. The tasks we performed include (1) Training Dowling Associate employee to be familiar with Paramics model; (2) Paramics simulation model development; (3) Simulation model fine-tuning; (4) Model calibration; (5) Paramics plugin support.
*Map picture source: Google