Modeling Traffic Flow Operation in Multilane and Multiclass Urban Networks

The traffic control task in heterogeneous multilane motorways and urban networks is complicated because it concerns multiple objectives and multiple target groups (user classes). Furthermore, it is characterized by large differences in driving behaviors between user classes and network types. The latter are caused by the interaction between user classes, the interplay between control measures, and the interaction between different parts of the networks. This complexity requires a model-based approach for achieving better understanding of the complicated process at hand and for the subsequent efficient control of these processes, for example, by applying model-based optimal controls. However, the contemporary macroscopic traffic flow models for urban networks are deficient in that they fail to deal adequately with heterogeneous traffic on multilane links. The aim of this paper is to devise a much more elaborate macroscopic traffic flow model, focusing on urban networks, to be able to cope with the complex control task and its application. The model proposed here is then implemented in the urban part of a computer-based network model, HELENA.