Microsimulation study of vehicular interactions in heterogeneous traffic flow on intercity roads

Abstract

Study of the basic traffic flow characteristics and comprehensive understanding of vehicular interaction are the pre-requisites for highway capacity and level of service analyses and formulation of effective traffic regulation and control measures. This is better done by modeling the system, which will enable the study of the influencing factors over a wide range. Computer simulation has emerged as an effective technique for modeling traffic flow due to its capability to account for the randomness related to traffic. This paper is concerned with application of a simulation model of heterogeneous traffic flow, named HETEROSIM, to study the relationships between traffic flow variables such as traffic volume and speed. Further, the model is also applied to quantify the vehicular interaction in terms of Passenger Car Equivalent (PCE) or Passenger Car Unit (PCU), taking a stretch of an intercity road in India as the case for the study. The results of the study, provides an insight into the complexity of the vehicular interaction in heterogeneous traffic.