Regional Data Archiving and Management for Northeast Illinois

This project studies the feasibility and implementation options for establishing a regional data archiving system to help monitor and manage traffic operations and planning for the northeastern Illinois region. It aims to provide a clear guidance to the regional transportation agencies, from both technical and business perspectives, about building such a comprehensive transportation information system. Several implementation alternatives are identified and analyzed. This research is carried out in three phases. In the first phase, existing documents related to ITS deployments in the broader Chicago area are summarized, and a thorough review is conducted of similar systems across the country. Various stakeholders are interviewed to collect information on all data elements that they store, including the format, system, and granularity. Their perception of a data archive system, such as potential benefits and costs, is also surveyed. In the second phase, a conceptual design of the database is developed. This conceptual design includes system architecture, functional modules, user interfaces, and examples of usage. In the last phase, the possible business models for the archive system to sustain itself are reviewed. We estimate initial capital and recurring operational/maintenance costs for the system based on realistic information on the hardware, software, labor, and resource requirements. We also identify possible revenue opportunities. A few implementation options for the archive system are summarized in this report; namely: 1. System hosted by a partnering agency 2. System contracted to a university 3. System contracted to a national laboratory 4. System outsourced to a service provider The costs, advantages and disadvantages for each of these recommended options are also provided.ICT-R27-22published or submitted for publicationis peer reviewe

Characterization of Traffic Oscillation Propagation under Nonlinear Car-Following Laws

AbstractUnlike linear car-following models, nonlinear models generally can generate more realistic traffic oscillation phenomenon, but nonlinearity makes analytical quantification of oscillation characteristics (e.g, periodicity and amplitude) significantly more difficult. This paper proposes a novel mathematical framework that accurately quantifies oscillation characteristics for a general class of nonlinear car-following laws. This framework builds on the describing function technique from nonlinear control theory and is comprised of three modules: expression of car-following models in terms of oscillation components, analyses of local and asymptotic stabilities, and quantification of oscillation propagation characteristics. Numerical experiments with a range of well-known nonlinear car-following laws show that the proposed approach is capable of accurately predicting oscillation characteristics under realistic physical constraints and complex driving behaviors. This framework not only helps further understand the root causes of the traffic oscillation phenomenon but also paves a solid foundation for the design and calibration of realistic nonlinear car-following models that can reproduce empirical oscillation characteristics

Planning ride-sharing services with detour restrictions for spatially heterogeneous demand: A multi-zone queuing network approach

This study presents a multi-zone queuing network model for steady-state ride-sharing operations that serve heterogeneous demand, and then builds upon this model to optimize the design of ride-sharing services. Spatial heterogeneity is addressed by partitioning the study region into a set of relatively homogeneous zones, and a set of criteria are imposed to avoid significant detours among matched passengers. A generalized multi-zone queuing network model is then developed to describe how vehicles' states transition within each zone and across neighboring zones, and how passengers are served by idle or partially occupied vehicles. A large system of equations is constructed based on the queuing network model to analytically evaluate steady-state system performance. Then, we formulate a constrained nonlinear program to optimize the design of ride-sharing services, such as zone-level vehicle deployment, vehicle routing paths, and vehicle rebalancing operations. A customized solution approach is also proposed to decompose and solve the optimization problem. The proposed model and solution approach are applied to a hypothetical case and a real-world Chicago case study, so as to demonstrate their applicability and to draw insights. These numerical examples not only reveal interesting insights on how ride-sharing services serve heterogeneous demand, but also highlight the importance of addressing demand heterogeneity when designing ride-sharing services

Parking Space Management via Dynamic Performance-Based Pricing

In congested urban areas, it remains a pressing challenge to reduce unnecessary vehicle circling for parking while at the same time maximize parking space utilization. In observance of new information technologies that have become readily accessible to drivers and parking agencies, we develop a dynamic non-cooperative bi-level model (i.e. Stackelberg leader-follower game) to set parking prices in real-time for effective parking access and space utilization. The model is expected to fit into an integrated parking pricing and management system, where parking reservations and transactions are facilitated by sensing and informatics infrastructures, that ensures the availability of convenient spaces at equilibrium market prices. It is shown with numerical examples that the proposed dynamic parking pricing model has the potential to virtually eliminate vehicle circling for parking, which results in significant reduction in adverse socioeconomic externalities such as traffic congestion and emissions

Spillover Effect and Economic Effect of Red Light Cameras

“Spillover effect” of red light cameras (RLCs) refers to the expected safety improvement at intersections other than those actually treated. Such effects may be due to jurisdiction-wide publicity of RLCs and the general public’s lack of knowledge on the exact installation locations of RLCs. Ignoring possible spillover effect could lead to an underestimation of the benefit of RLCs. Both a naïve study and an empirical Bayes study were conducted in this project for selected intersections from the Chicago area, and the results showed that a substantial spillover effect seemed to exist for the studied intersections. The installation of RLCs would lead to changes in rear-end crashes and right-angle crashes. These crashes are often associated with different severities (K/A/B/C/PDO) and different socioeconomic impacts. Assessing the benefit and cost of installing RLCs could help agencies understand the cost effectiveness of RLCs as a safety countermeasure. Crash reduction estimates at the 41 selected RLC intersections from Project ICT R27-SP32 were used, and the results showed the cost effectiveness of installing RLCs at these intersections.IDOT-R27-SP33Ope

Positioning, Planning and Operation of Emergency Response Resources and Coordination between Jurisdictions

Railroad related rail incidents, particularly those involving hazardous material (hazmat), cause severe consequences and pose significant threats to safety, public health and the environment. Rail safety is a huge issue in Midwestern states such as Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. This project aims at strategically positioning and allocating emergency responders and resources in anticipation of potential accidents in a region that may be impacted by rail incidents. Mathematical models and solution techniques are developed to enable systematic analysis of the emergency response system associated with railroad incidents; e.g., to strategically position and allocate emergency responders and resources in anticipation of potential accidents along spatially distributed railroad networks. We consider the added complexity due to vulnerability of the emergency response system itself, such as the risk of disruptions to the transportation network for first-responders (e.g., blockage of railroad crossings). The outcomes from these tasks will provide fundamental understanding, operational guidelines, and practical tools to policy makers (e.g., federal and state agencies) to induce socio-economically favorable system that support safe and efficient railroad industry operations