Quantifying road traffic emissions embedded in a multi-objective traffic assignment model

In a road network, drivers typically seek to minimize their own travel time, often affecting system-wide performance. With the increasing environmental awareness, for an efficient traffic assignment (TA), besides concerns with travel times, traffic managers should not neglect the system-wide level of both global and local pollutant emissions. Measuring road traffic emissions can be costly and different models based on vehicle-specific parameters with many input variables have been suggested in the literature. This paper proposes a simple way to quantifying carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOX) emissions with only average speed as input variable and presents a multi-objective TA approach that seeks to minimize system-wide travel time, distance travelled (associated with fuel consumption) and global and local pollutant emissions. A real-world case study on an intercity corridor with many alternative routes between two zones is presented. Experiments considering TA based on travel time, and on time, distance travelled, and pollutant emissions are reported. Results highlight that system optimal distribution based on the suggested multi-objective TA based on three components yields savings in terms of distance travelled (2.6%) and emissions (1.3% for CO2 and 1.1% for NOX), but penalizes travel time 3%, which is translated in an increase of 20sec per vehicle, when compared to the solution only focused on minimizing travel time. The developed methodology is a suitable tool for traffic analysts to predict vehicle system-wide travel time, distance travelled and pollutant emissions with few vehicle information but with a reasonable detail for a specific traffic flow on a given road network, to support analyses for sustainable transport policies and may be used, for instance, as an environmental impact component of a pricing scheme, traffic signal control strategies based on emissions reduction, or to minimize congestion by giving prior information to drivers on the specific routes to be chosen.publishe

Research on Congestion Pricing in Multimode Traffic considering Delay and Emission

Rapid development of urbanization and automation has resulted in serious urban traffic congestion and air pollution problems in many Chinese cities recently. As a traffic demand management strategy, congestion pricing is acknowledged to be effective in alleviating the traffic congestion and improving the efficiency of traffic system. This paper proposes an urban traffic congestion pricing model based on the consideration of transportation network efficiency and environment effects. First, the congestion pricing problem under multimode (i.e., car mode and bus mode) urban traffic network condition is investigated. Second, a traffic congestion pricing model based on bilevel programming is formulated for a dual-mode urban transportation network, in which the delay and emission of vehicles are considered. Third, an improved mathematical algorithm combining successive average method with the genetic algorithm is proposed to solve the bilevel programming problem. Finally, a numerical experiment based on a hypothetical network is performed to validate the proposed congestion pricing model and algorithm

Indicador integrado para análise dos custos externos do tráfego rodoviário

A mobilidade sustentável é atualmente um desafio amplamente promovido. Neste âmbito, os sistemas inteligentes de transportes apresentam potencial na mitigação das diferentes externalidades do tráfego relacionadas com os impactes no ambiente, sociedade e economia. Em particular, os sistemas inteligentes de identificação de rotas (eco-navegação) fornecem informação para uma escolha de rota adequada e permitem reduzir os níveis de congestionamento, consumo de energia e emissões. O principal objetivo deste artigo consiste em apresentar uma metodologia para um indicador capaz de integrar os impactes do tráfego rodoviário, que possa ser aplicável a um sistema avançado de gestão de tráfego. Assim, são avaliados os custos inerentes às emissões e concentrações de poluentes na atmosfera, o congestionamento, o ruído e a segurança rodoviária, ajustados a contextos locais

Exploring the future Electric Vehicle market and its impacts with an agent-based spatial integrated framework: A case study of Beijing, China

This paper investigates the potential expansion and impacts of Electric Vehicle (EV) market in Beijing, China at the micro level with an agent-based integrated urban model (SelfSim-EV), considering the interactions, feedbacks and dynamics found in the complex urban system. Specifically, a calibrated and validated SelfSim-EV Beijing model was firstly used to simulate how the EV market might expand in the context of urban evolution from 2016 to 2020, based on which the potential impacts of EV market expansion on the environment, power grid system and transportation infrastructures were assessed at the multiple resolutions. The results suggest that 1) the adoption rate of Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) increases over the period, whereas the rate of Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) almost remains the same; Furthermore, the so-called neighbour effects appear to influence the uptake of BEVs, based on the spatial analyses of the residential locations of BEV owners; 2) the EV market expansion could eventually benefit the environment, as evident from the slight decrease in the amounts of HC, CO and CO2 emissions after 2017; 3) Charging demand accounting for around 4% of total residential electricity demand in 2020 may put slight pressure on the power grid system; 4) the EV market expansion could influence several EV-related transport facilities, including parking lots, refuelling stations, and charging posts at parking lots, in terms of quantity, layout and usage. These results are expected to be useful for different EV-related stakeholders, such as local authorities and manufacturers, to shape polices and invest in technologies and infrastructures for EVs

Agent- and activity- based large-scale simulation of enroute travel, enroute refuelling and parking behaviours in Beijing, China

This paper develops an agent- and activity-based large-scale simulation model for Beijing, China (MATSim-Beijing) to explicitly simulate enroute travel, enroute refuelling and parking behaviours, as well as the associated vehicular energy consumption and emissions, based on MATSim (Multi-Agent Transport Simulation), which is a typical integrated activity-based model. In order to take into account heterogeneous parking and refuelling behaviours, the MATSim-Beijing model incorporates several Multinomial Logit (MNL) models to predict individual choices about the maximum acceptable times of walking from trip destination to parking lot, of diverting to a refuelling station and of queuing at a station, using the data collected in a paper-based questionnaire survey in Beijing. A Sensitivity Analysis (SA) -based calibration method was used to estimate the model parameters by searching for an optimal parameter combination with the objective of minimize the gap between simulated and observed traffic flow data, exhibiting a relatively good performance of decreasing the Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) by around 23%. Further, the calibrated model was used to investigate whether and how the population scaling and network simplification, which were two commonly used approaches to speeding up large-scale traffic simulations, might influence model accuracy and computing time. The results indicated that both approaches could to some extent influence model outputs, though they could significantly reduce computing time

Eco-driving technology for sustainable road transport: A review

© 2018 Elsevier Ltd Road transport consumes significant quantities of fossil fuel and accounts for a significant proportion of CO2 and pollutant emissions worldwide. The driver is a major and often overlooked factor that determines vehicle performance. Eco-driving is a relatively low-cost and immediate measure to reduce fuel consumption and emissions significantly. This paper reviews the major factors, research methods and implementation of eco-driving technology. The major factors of eco-driving are acceleration/deceleration, driving speed, route choice and idling. Eco-driving training programs and in-vehicle feedback devices are commonly used to implement eco-driving skills. After training or using in-vehicle devices, immediate and significant reductions in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions have been observed with slightly increased travel time. However, the impacts of both methods attenuate over time due to the ingrained driving habits developed over the years. These findings imply the necessity of developing quantitative eco-driving patterns that could be integrated into vehicle hardware so as to generate more constant and uniform improvements, as well as developing more effective and lasting training programs and in-vehicle devices. Current eco-driving studies mainly focus on the fuel savings and CO2 reduction of individual vehicles, but ignore the pollutant emissions and the impacts at network levels. Finally, the challenges and future research directions of eco-driving technology are elaborated

Estimación de una ruta representativa para la ciudad de quito según la metodología del ciclo de emisiones reales RDE

El constante deterioro del medio ambiente se ha vuelto un tema de vital importancia para la sociedad, lo que ha vuelto necesario abordar esta problemática para evitar llegar a un punto de no retorno de las condiciones en las que se encuentra el mundo. Las emisiones automotrices son una de las principales causantes de esta situación, al existir grandes cantidades de vehículos que circulan en las ciudades. Existen algunos tipos de ciclos de conducción que las grandes empresas automotrices toman para el proceso de homologación de sus vehículos en donde se regula la cantidad de emisiones producidas y se verifica si es posible o no su salida al mercado. De igual manera, en el país para realizar el proceso de matriculación se debe cumplir unos límites de las emisiones que los vehículos producen. Estos procedimientos son indispensables para tener un control del efecto que tiene el campo automotriz a la situación ambiental. No obstante, estos procedimientos no obtienen valores certeros puesto que se realiza en laboratorios donde no existen las condiciones de una conducción real. Existen pruebas en las que se obtiene las emisiones reales a través de dispositivos que se instalan en el vehículo, al recorrer una ruta que debe cumplir ciertas condiciones, como velocidad, tiempo y distancia, necesarias para tener valores que permitan realizar un análisis. Este proyecto tiene como fin encontrar una ruta que cumpla con las condiciones de emisiones reales, que establece la norma Euro 6, para la ciudad de Quito mediante los datos adquiridos en dos vehículos livianos en conducción. Debido a la poca accesibilidad de un dispositivo portátil para medir las emisiones, se realiza la estimación de los gases emitidos, a través del procesamiento de los datos obtenidos del vehículo mediante un dispositivo arduino compatible con el sistema OBD2, al recorrer la ruta presentada para generar una comparación entre los vehículos utilizados.The constant deterioration of the environment has become an issue of vital importance for society, which has made it necessary to address this problem to avoid reaching a point of no return in the conditions in which the world finds itself. Automotive emissions are one of the main causes of this situation, as there are large numbers of vehicles circulating in cities. There are some types of driving cycles that large automotive companies take for the homologation process of their vehicles, where the amount of emissions produced is regulated and it is verified whether or not it is possible to go on the market. In the same way, in the country to carry out the registration process, certain limits of the emissions that the vehicles produce must be met. These procedures are essential to control the effect that the automotive field has on the environmental situation. However, these procedures do not obtain accurate values since it is carried out in laboratories where the conditions of real driving do not exist. There are tests in which the real emissions are obtained through devices that are installed in the vehicle, when traveling a route that must meet certain conditions, such as speed, time and distance, necessary to have values that allow an analysis. The purpose of this project is to find a route that meets the real emission conditions, established by the Euro 6 standard, for the city of Quito through the data acquired in two light vehicles while driving. Due to the limited accessibility of a portable device to measure emissions, the estimation of the gases emitted is carried out, through the processing of the data obtained from the vehicle through an Arduino device compatible with the OBD2 system, when traveling the route presented to generate a comparison between the used vehicles

The GHG emission reduction toolkit : a case study of Blacktown City, Australia

This PhD thesis is in line with Australia’s national policy of a 26-28% reduction in its greenhouse gas emissions to 2005 levels. According to a review of its climate change policy in 2017, the Australian Government is committed to tackling climate change, while maintaining a strong economy, providing affordable energy and security for industries. This requires new initiatives in existing technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions or the emergence of new technologies altogether. Whatever the strategy, the final goal is to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. This national target is now disseminated among different sectors and governmental bodies in Australia, requesting them to submit their action plans against climate change. This includes all Australian City Councils and incorporates Blacktown City Council as the Case Study for this study. As part of the Blacktown City Council’s commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, this research study is the result of collaboration between the Council and Western Sydney University. The authorities of both sides have signed a research collaboration agreement, ample evidence of a local university tackling local problems. This research agreement is unique as it opens a door for other local Councils to collaborate with universities. Blacktown City Council, on the other side of this agreement, can improve its body of knowledge through a comprehensive investigation of greenhouse gas mitigation using its available tools. Therefore, this research study developed a toolkit to help reduce the Council’s GHG Emission