16,430 research outputs found
Modeling Worldwide Highway Networks
This letter addresses the problem of modeling the highway systems of
different countries by using complex networks formalism. More specifically, we
compare two traditional geographical models with a modified geometrical network
model where paths, rather than edges, are incorporated at each step between the
origin and destination nodes. Optimal configurations of parameters are obtained
for each model and used in the comparison. The highway networks of Brazil, the
US and England are considered and shown to be properly modeled by the modified
geographical model. The Brazilian highway network yielded small deviations that
are potentially accountable by specific developing and sociogeographic features
of that country.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, 1 tabl
2 + 1 Highways: Overview and Future Directions
Most of the rural transportation system is composed of two-lane highways, and many of them serve as the primary means for rural access to urban areas and freeways. In some highways, traffic volumes can be not high enough to justify a four-lane highway but higher than can be served by isolated passing lanes, or can present high number of head-on collisions. In those conditions, 2 + 1 highways are potentially applicable. This type of highway is used to provide high-performance highways as intermediate solution between the common two-lane highway and the freeway. Successful experiences reported in Germany, Sweden, Finland, Poland, or Texas (US) may suggest that they are potentially applicable in other countries. The objective of this white paper is to provide an overview of the past practice in 2 + 1 highways and discuss the research directions and challenges in this field, specially focusing on, but not limited to, operational research in association with the activities of the Subcommittee on Two-Lane Highways (AHB40 2.2) of the Transportation Research Board. The significance of this paper is twofold: (1) it provides wider coverage of past 2 + 1 highways design and evaluation, and (2) it discusses future directions of this field.The authors wish to thank the Fundación Agustín de Betancourt from the Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena for funding the research
An Empirical Model for Optimal Highway Durability in Cold Regions
We develop an empirical tool to estimate optimal highway durability in cold regions. To test the model, we assemble a data set containing all highway construction and maintenance projects in Arizona and Washington State from 1990 to 2014. The data set includes information on location, time, type (resurfacing, construction, or lane widening), pavement material and thickness, and total expenditure for these projects. Using the data, we first estimate how highway maintenance costs and highway duration depend on pavement thickness and traffic loading. We then calibrate the effects of different deicers on highway durability and thus on highway maintenance costs. Finally, we demonstrate how the estimated and calibrated model can be used by planners to make optimal decisions for highway pavement and winter operations in cold regions
Towards a variational principle for motivated vehicle motion
We deal with the problem of deriving the microscopic equations governing the
individual car motion based on the assumptions about the strategy of driver
behavior. We suppose the driver behavior to be a result of a certain compromise
between the will to move at a speed that is comfortable for him under the
surrounding external conditions, comprising the physical state of the road, the
weather conditions, etc., and the necessity to keep a safe headway distance
between the cars in front of him. Such a strategy implies that a driver can
compare the possible ways of his further motion and so choose the best one. To
describe the driver preferences we introduce the priority functional whose
extremals specify the driver choice. For simplicity we consider a single-lane
road. In this case solving the corresponding equations for the extremals we
find the relationship between the current acceleration, velocity and position
of the car. As a special case we get a certain generalization of the optimal
velocity model similar to the "intelligent driver model" proposed by Treiber
and Helbing.Comment: 6 pages, RevTeX
Paying for the Fixed Costs of Roads
This paper explores alternative financing mechanisms to pay for the fixed costs of roads, particularly in cases without rising marginal costs. Mechanisms considered include tolls, gas taxes, and developer payments. The problems with each are discussed. An example looking at problems of temporal and spatial free-riding is presented.Transportation financing, economics, toll roads, impact fees .
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