Optimal traffic assignment to urban streets with air pollution consideration

Traffic assignment is usually determined solely on the basis of minimum travel time through the network. The present study on traffic assignment has taken into account not only traffic performance but also air quality over the street. A simple model of highway air pollution is developed by considering macroscopic material balance of polluted air mass over a segment of a highway that passes through an urban area, A new traffic assignment scheme has been developed based on the air pollution model. The optimal traffic assignment obtained by the new scheme is affected significantly by meteorological conditions.     

Modification of the Highway Capacity Manual two‐lane highway analysis procedure for Spanish conditions

The US Highway Capacity Manual (HCM) methodology is used in Spain to evaluate traffic operation and quality of service. The effect of passing manoeuvre on two‐lane highway operational performance is considered through adjustment factors to average travel speeds and percent time spent following. The procedure is largely based on simulations in TWOPAS and passing behaviours observed during US calibrations in the 1970s. It is not clear whether US driving behaviour and vehicles' performance are comparable with Spanish conditions. The objective of this research is to adapt the HCM 2010 methodology to Spanish driver behaviour, for base conditions (i.e. no passing restrictions). To do so, TWOPAS was calibrated and validated based on current Spanish passing field data. The calibration used a genetic algorithm. The case study included an ideal two‐lane highway with varying directional traffic flow rate, directional split and percentage of trucks. The updated methodology for base conditions is simpler than the current HCM 2010 and does not rely on interpolation from tables. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Allocation of onroad mobile emissions to road segments for air toxics modeling in an urban area

Dispersion models are useful tools for setting emission control priorities and developing strategies for reducing air toxics emissions. Previous methodologies for modeling hazardous air pollutant emissions for onroad mobile sources are based on using spatial surrogates to allocate county level emissions to grid cells. A disadvantage of this process is that it spreads onroad emissions throughout a grid cell instead of along actual road locations. High local concentrations may be underestimated near major roadways, which are often clustered in urban centers. Here, we describe a methodology which utilizes a Geographic Information System to allocate benzene emissions to major road segments in an urban area and model the segments as elongated area sources. The Industrial Source Complex Short Term dispersion model is run using both gridded and link-based emissions to evaluate the effect of improved spatial allocation of emissions on ambient modeled benzene concentrations. Allocating onroad mobile emissions to road segments improves the agreement between modeled concentrations when compared with monitor observations, and also results in higher estimated concentrations in the urban center.     

Experimental evaluation of Heavy Duty Vehicle speed patterns in urban and port areas and estimation of their fuel consumption and exhaust emissions

Exhaust emissions and fuel consumption of Heavy Duty Vehicles (HDVs) in urban and port areas were evaluated through a dedicated investigation. The HDV fleet composition and traffic driving from highways to the maritime port of Genoa and crossing the city were analysed. Typical urban trips linking highway exits to port gates and HDV mission profiles within the port area were defined. A validation was performed through on-board instrumentation to record HDV instantaneous speeds in urban and port zones. A statistical procedure enabled the building-up of representative speed patterns. High contrasts and specific driving conditions were observed in the port area. Representative speed profiles were then used to simulate fuel consumption and emissions for HDVs, using the Passenger car and Heavy duty Emission Model (PHEM). Complementary estimations were derived from Copert and HBEFA methodologies, allowing the comparison of different calculation approaches and scales. Finally, PHEM was implemented to assess the performances of EGR or SCR systems for NO_X reduction in urban driving and at very low speeds.The method and results of the investigation are presented. Fuel consumption and pollutant emission estimation through different methodologies are discussed, as well as the necessity of characterizing very local driving conditions for appropriate assessment.     

A hybrid controller for autonomous vehicles driving on automated highways

This paper addresses the problem of the hybrid control of autonomous vehicles driving on automated highways. Vehicles are autonomous, so they do not communicate with each other nor with the infrastructure. Two problems have to be dealt with: a vehicle driving in a single-lane highway must never collide with its leading vehicle; and a vehicle entering the highway at a designated entry junction must be able to merge from the merging lane to the main lane, again without any collision. To solve these problems, we equip each vehicle with a hybrid controller, consisting of several continuous control laws embedded inside a finite state automaton. The automaton specifies when a given vehicle must enter the highway, merge into the main lane, yield to other vehicles, exit from the highway, and so on. The continuous control laws specify what acceleration the vehicle must have in order to avoid collisions with nearby vehicles. By carefully designing these control laws and the conditions guarding the automaton transitions, we are able to demonstrate three important results. First, we state the initial conditions guaranteeing that a following vehicle never collides with its leading vehicle. Second, we extend this first result to a lane of autonomous vehicles. Third, we prove that if all the vehicles are equipped with our hybrid controller, then no collision can ever occur, and all vehicles either merge successfully or are forced to drop out when they reach the end of their merging lane. Finally, we show the outcome of a highway microsimulation modelled after the Katy Corridor near Houston, Texas: our single-lane highway can accommodate 4000 vehicles per hour with neither drop-outs nor traffic congestion. It is entirely programmed in SHIFT, a hybrid systems simulation language developed at UC Berkeley by the PATH group. This shows that SHIFT is a well suited language for designing safe control laws for autonomous highway systems, among others.     

喀斯特地貌山区隧道不良地质灾害防治技术探讨

文章结合某喀斯特地貌山区高速公路隧道的施工经验,介绍了三种不同类型隧道地质灾害的防治技术,从而对隧道通过不同形态岩溶地段的处理措施进行总结。     

公路施工密目网覆盖法抑制扬尘机理分析

大气污染治理是污染防治攻坚战的首要内容,也是当前环境保护面临的重要问题。摄制大气中的颗粒物,保持空气质量持续达标,始终是环保治理工作的重要任务。公路工程施工的动土面积大,路基工程土方作业、结构物工程作业、碎石等散状颗粒物堆场等,给公路工程施工现场的大气污染治理带来了很大的难度,根据当前环保政策及治理要求,普遍都要求公路工程施工做到施工现场100%覆盖。本文就从对当前公路工程施工现场产生扬尘的原因进行分析,并对常见的密目网覆盖机理进行探讨,以期对公路工程施工现场大气污染治理提供科学依据。     

Sight distance analysis of highways using GIS tools

Analyzing the distance visible to a driver on the highway is important for traffic safety, especially in maneuvers such as emergency stops, when passing another vehicle or when vehicles cross at intersections. This analysis is necessary not only in the design phase of highways, but also when they are in service. For its use in this last phase, a procedure supported by a Geographic Information System (GIS) has been implemented that determines the highway distances visible to the driver. The use of a GIS allows the sight distance analysis to be integrated with other analyses related to traffic safety, such as crash and design consistency analyses. In this way, more complete analyses could be made and costs shared. Additionally, with the procedure proposed it is possible to use data regarding the trajectory of a vehicle obtained on a highway with a Global Positioning System (GPS) device. This application is very useful when highway design data are not available. The procedure developed and its application in a case study are presented in this article.     

Vehicular pollution prediction modelling: a review of highway dispersion models

Air quality modelling plays an important role in formulating air pollution control and management strategies by providing guidelines for better and more efficient air quality planning. Several line source models, mostly Gaussian‐based, have been suggested to predict pollutant concentrations near highways/roads. These models, despite several assumptions and limitations, are used throughout the world, including in India, to carry out air pollution prediction analysis due to vehicular traffic near roads/highways. These models are being continuously upgraded and modified based on field experiments, and numerical and physical modelling results. An effort has been made in the present paper to review briefly the philosophy and basic features of most of the commonly used highway dispersion models. The paper also discusses various theories and techniques that led to the development and modification of these models along with the statistical analysis tools to evaluate the performance of these models. An attempt has also been made to summarize briefly the various line source models currently used in India and to highlight the difficulties being faced while using them in an Indian context.     

Mechanics of the passing maneuver and the impact of large trucks

Many highway agencies are evaluating the impacts of long combination vehicles on two-lane freeway operations. A critical element of this evaluation is the impact of the large trucks on the passing sight distances required for safe overtakes. This paper reviews recent analyses of the passing maneuver and highlights a number of inconsistencies in these approaches. The paper then introduces a modified model that better reflects the characteristics of the passing maneuver and illustrates the effects of different assumptions about acceleration, deceleration, and vehicle clearances on passing sight distance requirements. The paper concludes with some passing sight distance recommendations for different design speeds and overtaken vehicle lengths. The introduction of long combination vehicles on two-lane roads would increase passing sight distances for design and marking by substantial amounts.     

Integrated data-driven modeling to estimate PM2.5 pollution from heavy-duty truck transportation activity over metropolitan area

Based on the national emission inventory data from different countries, heavy-duty trucks are the highest on-road PM_2.5 emitters and their representation is estimated disproportionately using current modeling methods. This study expands current understanding of the impact of heavy-duty truck movement on the overall PM_2.5 pollution in urban areas through an integrated data-driven modeling methodology that could more closely represent the truck transportation activities. A detailed integrated modeling methodology is presented in the paper to estimate urban truck related PM_2.5 pollution by using a robust spatial regression-based truck activity model, the mobile source emission and Gaussian dispersion models. In this research, finely resolved spatial–temporal emissions were calculated using bottom-up approach, where hourly truck activity and detailed truck-class specific emissions rates are used as inputs. To validate the proposed methodology, the Cincinnati urban area was selected as a case study site and the proposed truck model was used with U.S. EPA’s MOVES and AERMOD models. The heavy-duty truck released PM_2.5 pollution is estimated using observed concentrations at the urban air quality monitoring stations. The monthly air quality trend estimated using our methodology matches very well with the observed trend at two different continuous monitoring stations with Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient of 0.885. Based on emission model results, it is found that 71 percent of the urban mobile-source PM_2.5 emissions are caused by trucks and also 21 percent of the urban overall ambient PM_2.5 concentrations can be attributed to trucks in Cincinnati urban area.     

Use of Bayesian inference method to model vehicular air pollution in local urban areas

Traffic Related Air Pollution (TRAP) studies are usually investigated using different categories such as air pollution exposure for health impacts, urban transportation network design to mitigate pollution, environmental impacts of pollution, etc. All of these subfields often rely on a robust air pollution model, which also necessitates an accurate prediction of future pollutants. As is widely accepted by the heath authorities, TRAP is considered to be the major health issue in urban areas, and it is difficult to keep pollution at harmless levels if the time sequenced dynamic pollution and traffic parameters are not identified and modelled efficiently. In our work here, artificial intelligence techniques, such as Bayesian Networks with an optimized configuration, are used to deliver a probabilistic traffic data analysis and predictive modelling for air pollution (SO₂, NO₂ and CO) at very local scale of an urban region with up to 85% accuracy. The main challenge for traditional data analysis is a lack of capability to reveal the hidden links between distant data attributes (e.g. pollution sources, dynamic traffic parameters, etc.), whereas some subtle effects of these parameters or events may play an important role in pollution on a long-term basis. This study focuses on the optimisation of Bayesian Networks to unveil hidden links and to increase the prediction accuracy of TRAP considering its further association with a predictive GIS system.     

强夯置换在高速公路盐渍化软弱土地基处治中的应用

国道314线和硕-库尔勒段高速公路作为交通部西部建设课题的依托工程,在K432 463.20分离式立体交叉被交线K0 125～K0 300段首次应用强夯置换处治盐渍化软弱土地基,取到良好的效果。文章从强夯置换的原理、施工参数、检测、路基施工与预压过程中地基变形等方面,介绍了该方法在国道314线和硕～库尔勒段高速公路中的应用情况。     

Reducing pedestrian exposure to environmental pollutants: A combined noise exposure and air quality analysis approach

This study offers a combined analysis of pedestrian exposure to noise and air pollution within a specific urban setting in Dublin, Ireland. The impact of a recent boardwalk development on reducing pedestrian exposure to air and noise pollution is examined while modelling experiments are undertaken to explore the possibility of achieving further reductions in pollutant exposure through better urban design and planning. The results show that the boardwalk has reduced pedestrian exposure to air and noise pollution and that further reductions may be achieved by more strict segregation of pedestrian and road traffic in urban areas.     

烟台西山城市公路隧道设计与施工

比较山岭公路隧道而言,由于城市人口、设施较为密集,隧道施工对周边环境影响较大,因而城市公路隧道在设计、施工等方面应有更高的要求,即在充分考虑隧道使用功能以及工程造价的同时,应尽可能将隧道施工对周边环境产生的影响降至最低。因此,坚持“以人为本”、重视隧道景观设计、加强环境保护将成为城市公路隧道建设的重要理念。文章结合烟台市西山隧道工况,介绍了城市公路隧道设计方案、施工方法以及环境保护措施。     

铁路隧道下穿既有公路地层变形特性研究

文章结合张唐铁路工程燕山隧道下穿公路出口段,采用三维有限差分程序,研究分析了其施工过程中的地层变形特性、力学响应、能量积聚及塑性区分布特征.研究结果表明:公路最大沉降量小于规范要求,围岩竖向最大变形为20 mm,水平变形为16 mm;掌子面前方挤出变形明显,最大值为38 mm;边墙能量密度集中现象较显著,位于距洞壁5 m深部围岩处;掌子面前方6 m左右围岩处出现能量积聚,为掌子面稳定关键部位:塑性区主要集中在掌子面前方、拱肩、边墙及墙脚.为此,建议对掌子面进行预加固,保证墙脚和拱肩部位配筋,提高结构整体稳定性.     

广西高速公路呼叫中心系统的设计与探讨

文章基于高速公路呼叫中心系统建设的目的和必要性，介绍了现有高速公路应急处置系统的现状及存在的问题，提出建设高速公路呼叫中心系统，并对系统的建设思路、管理体制、逻辑结构及相应功能进行了阐述。     

Research of highway runway clearance rules

Aiming at the problems in the highway runway clearance condition evaluation, according to the improved obstruction requirement of highway runway, the inner transitional surface (ITS) and outer transitional surface (OTS) range are calculated and analyzed in detail, the shape range of the ITS and OTS is pointed out, the methods of calculating the intersecting line and the key various points among ITS, runway strip (RS), inner horizontal surface (IHS) in terminal clearance zone (TCZ), including among OTS, IHS and outer horizontal surface (OHS) in side clearance zone (SCZ) are put forward. Furthermore, obstruction requirement when aircraft are placed on apron of the near highway sections is considered, then the corresponding steps of evaluation are proposed. The procedural design of highway runway clearance condition evaluation is realized by means of software to program. The superelevation condition of the obstacle in the clearance of the highway runway is calculated and analyzed by actual examples. All these have provided a theoretical basis for exactly determining the position, altitude and the superelevation value of the obstacle in the highway runway clearance zone.