Evaluation of Special Event Traffic Management: The Brickyard 400 Case Study

This paper reports on the anonymous tracking of Bluetooth enabled consumer electronic devices to measure the travel time, or space mean speed, of travelers. This sampling technique was deployed at six interstate locations and two signalized arterials in the Indianapolis, IN metropolitan area the week of the NASCAR Brickyard 400. The week prior to the race before data was also collected from a subset of those sites. The day of the race, almost 19,000 unique MAC address were captured at the eight locations. From that information real-time travel time estimates were provided to Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) mobile data terminals. After the race, the data was processed to obtain travel time plots and origin destination matrixes to provide a quantitative evaluation of race day traffic management operations. Selected reports and charts from that analysis are discussed in the paper

The origin of iron silicides in ureilite meteorites

Ureilite meteorites contain iron silicide minerals including suessite (Fe,Ni)3Si, hapkeite (Fe2Si) and xifengite (Fe5Si3). Despite occurring mostly in brecciated varieties presumed to be derived from the regolith of the ureilite parent asteroid, suessite has also been confirmed in one lithology of a dimict ureilite (NWA 1241). In contrast, Si-bearing Fe-metals occur in both brecciated and unbrecciated ureilites, implying that they were formed throughout the ureilite parent asteroid. We examined major, minor and trace element data of Fe-metals in seven brecciated ureilites (DaG 319, DaG 999, DaG 1000, DaG 1023, DaG 1047, EET 83309, and EET 87720) in addition to the dimict ureilite NWA 1241. In this study we show that the silicides and Si-bearing metals in ureilites have similar siderophile trace element patterns; therefore, the precursors to the silicides were indigenous to the ureilite parent body. Si-free kamacite grains in brecciated ureilites show flatter, more chondritic siderophile element patterns. They may also be derived from the interior of the ureilite parent body, but some may be of exogenous origin (impactor debris), as are rare taenite grains. On Earth, iron silicides are often formed under high-temperature and strongly reducing conditions (e.g. blast furnaces, lightning strikes). On the Moon, hapkeite (Fe2Si) and other silicides have been found in the regolith where they were formed by impact-induced space weathering. In the Stardust aerogel, iron silicides derived from comet Wild2 were also formed by an impact-related reduction process. Silicides in ureilite regolith breccias may have formed by similar processes but ureilites additionally contain abundant elemental carbon which probably acted as a reducing agent, thus larger and more abundant silicide grains were formed than in the lunar regolith or cometary material. The origin of suessite in NWA 1241 may be analogous to that of reduced lithologies in the terrestrial mantle, although a regolith origin may also be possible since this sample is shown here to be a dimict breccia

Modeling and Optimization of the Indiana Lane Merge Control System on Approaches to Freeway Work Zones, Part I

Severe traffic turbulence on entry sections of freeway work zones increases the delays and risk of crash. A new Indiana Department of Transportation system called Indiana Merge Lane System (IMLS) creates a dynamic no passing zone on the approach to the freeway work zone through the sequence of DO NOT PASS signs. The system is thought to encourage drivers to switch lanes well upstream of the discontinuous lane taper where the merging maneuver is safer and less intrusive. The IMLS is expected to impact drivers’ behavior, their perception of the traffic conditions, and traffic safety. This research is focused on: (1) drivers’ compliance with the system, (2) delays and travel times on approaches to work zones, (3) optimal configuration of the system, and (4) warrants for the system’s use. The simulation and field studies indicate a significant reduction in the number of merging maneuvers near work zones after the IMLS is applied. Also, the travel time on continuous lanes is reduced. The increased fairness of the system improves the perception of the traffic conditions among the majority of drivers. A slight reduction in the capacity of the merge point is the second finding of the field observations. This finding should be confirmed through long-term measurements of capacity during regular use of the IMLS units. The final report is divided into two parts. Part I presents the performed research, including the simulation model development and simulation experiments. Part II is published as a separate report and contains the system description, guidelines for its use, and rules for its setting. The system description includes presentation of the concept and the system components. The guidelines for the system use provide the traffic conditions where the system is expected to provide benefit. Finally, the manual gives a set of simple rules useful in setting all the system parameters to achieve the maximum reduction in the travel time in the continuous lane

Application of Travel Time Information for Traffic Management

This report summarizes findings and implementations of probe vehicle data collection based on Bluetooth MAC address matching technology. Probe vehicle travel time data are studied in the following field deployment case studies: analysis of traffic characteristics on key routes during a special event (the Brickyard 400 race in Indianapolis, IN); assessment of delay to motorists during road construction; assessment of motorist compliance with work zone speed limits with and without heavy police enforcement; analysis of route choice during road construction in northwestern Indiana; and evaluation of winter operations on a signalized arterial. In addition to these case studies, the data collection equipment infrastructure was used to collect data for several other concurrent projects that focused on measuring arterial travel time. A discussion of the results from those studies is also provided. In addition to case implementation summaries, Appendixes provide recommendations for sensor deployment height and the construction of efficient SQL queries

Modeling and Optimization of the Indiana Land Merge Control System on Approaches to Freeway Work Zones, Part I: Implementation Report; Part II: Manual of the Indiana Lane Merge Control System (2 volumes)

Severe traffic turbulence on entry sections of freeway work zones increases the delays and risk of crash. A new Indiana Department of Transportation system called Indiana Merge Lane System (IMLS) creates a dynamic no passing zone on the approach to the freeway work zone through the sequence of DO NOT PASS signs. The system is thought to encourage drivers to switch lanes well upstream of the discontinuous lane taper where the merging maneuver is safer and less intrusive. The IMLS is expected to impact drivers’ behavior, their perception of the traffic conditions, and traffic safety. This research is focused on: (1) drivers’ compliance with the system, (2) delays and travel times on approaches to work zones, (3) optimal configuration of the system, and (4) warrants for the system’s use. The simulation and field studies indicate a significant reduction in the number of merging maneuvers near work zones after the IMLS is applied. Also, the travel time on continuous lanes is reduced. The increased fairness of the system improves the perception of the traffic conditions among the majority of drivers. A slight reduction in the capacity of the merge point is the second finding of the field observations. This finding should be confirmed through long-term measurements of capacity during regular use of the IMLS units. The final report is divided into two parts. Part I presents the performed research, including the simulation model development and simulation experiments. Part II contains the system description, guidelines for its use, and rules for its setting. The system description includes presentation of the concept and the system components. The guidelines for the system use provide the traffic conditions where the system is expected to provide benefit. Finally, the manual gives a set of simple rules useful in setting all the system parameters to achieve the maximum reduction in the travel time in the continuous lane