Development of platoon-based actuated signal control systems to coordinated intersections: application in corridors in Houston

A signal control method considering platoon-based actuation is presented with a focus on its application to two arterial corridors in the Houston Metropolitan Area, where the signal coordination is required for adjacent intersections. For the purpose of immediate implementation, the system was developed based on existing conventional loop detectors and control technologies used by Texas Department of Transportation. Simply based on volume and occupancy – the only traffic information reported by a conventional loop detector, it is impossible to precisely detect a platoon of vehicle approaching an intersection. As a compromise way, two specific logics were proposed to switch the system between the original coordinated control and the new platoon-based actuated control systems. At one testbed suffering from large left-turn traffic, the results revealed by the detector data before and after the implementation show that the model works well to relieve the delay for both left-turn traffic and through traffic on the major road. On another testbed where the platoon-based control is activated only when the through traffic is not high, some improvements were also observed. This method opens the door of wide application of the platoon-based signal control system (simply based on conventional loop detectors) to arterial corridors.