Multicycle Co-Coordination-Based Gating Strategy for Arterials’ Side Streets in Urban Networks

Abstract

This paper addresses the traffic congestion problem in closely spaced, separately coordinated arterials caused by the overflow of interspaces between arterials from the combination of arterial and side street traffic. To solve this issue, a gating mechanism that limits side street access to interspaces is proposed. The innovative aspect of this study is the identification of a suitable gating method among analyzable solutions—solutions that can be easily analyzed by practitioners, unlike solutions from opaque optimization tools. The paper demonstrates the feasibility of this strategy through the implementation of multicycle arterial co-coordination. This approach can be effectively employed based on the operation of modern traffic controllers without the need for expensive and complex traffic signal control systems. Using a field-like simulation model and the high-fidelity microsimulation environment VISSIM, this study evaluates the effectiveness of the proposed multicycle co-coordination-based gating (MCCB-gating) strategy. Results show significant improvements in travel time, delay reduction, and network efficiency across coordinated arterials and overall network performance without considerably sacrificing side street traffic operations. In addition, the investigation explores the interplay between individual intersections and their collective impact on network performance using cooperative game theory, specifically, Shapley values. The study highlights the potential of an analyzable MCCB-gating strategy to improve urban network conditions, offering valuable insights for enhancing transportation efficiency in congested cities.