基于连续体近似法的特大城市公交系统规划研究

公交普线规划因服务对象时间、空间的分散性,是大城市公交系统中最难规划的部分。本 文分析了大规模多中心城市地区公交网络分层级功能及规划次序,重点针对普线网提出基于运 营商和用户广义成本最低的连续体近似法模型搭建方法。通过确定区域网络的普线总服务距 离,总停靠站数,以及发车间隔等决策变量的最佳值,使公交运营企业和乘客在单位时间内的广 义预期成本最小化。利用本文提出的方法,对北京市进行区域划分,重新优化普线网,并基于北 京市路网和兴趣点分布,校核规划的理想网络,得到能够实施的设计网络。相比现状网络,优化 后的方案在成本控制和乘客出行体验方面都得到明显提升,分别减少企业运营成本5%,减少乘 客出行时间21%,达到了降本增效的目标。     

Combined effect of boost pressure and injection timing on the performance and combustion of CNG in a DI spark ignition engine

There is an increasing interest in supercharging spark ignition engines operating on CNG (compressed natural gas) mainly due to its superior knock resisting properties. However, there is a penalty in volumetric efficiency when directly injecting the gaseous fuel at early and partial injection timings. The present work reports the combined effects of a small boost pressure and injection timing on performance and combustion of CNG fueled DI (direct injection) engine. The experimental tests were carried out on a 4-stroke DI spark ignition engine with a compression ratio of 14. Early injection timing, when inlet valves are still open (at 300°BTDC), and partial injection timing, in which part of the injection occurs after the inlet valves are closed (at 180°BTDC), were varied at each operating speed with variation of the boost pressure from 2.5 to 10 kPa. A narrow angle injector (NAI) was used to increase the mixing rate at engine speeds between 2000 and 5000 rpm. Similar experiments were conducted on a naturally aspirated engine and the results were then compared with that of the boosting system to examine the combined effects of boost pressure and injection timing. It was observed that boost pressure above 7.5 kPa resulted in an improvement of performance and combustion of CNG DI engine at all operating speeds. This was manifested in the faster heat release rates and mass fraction burned that in turn improved combustion efficiency of the boosting system. An increased in cylinder pressure and temperature was also observed with boost pressure compared to naturally aspirated engine. Moreover, the combustion duration was reduced due to concentration of the heat release near to the top dead center as the result of the boost pressure. Supercharging was also found to reduce the penalty of volumetric efficiency at both the simulated port and partial injection timings.     

Performance investigation of vehicle suspension system with nonlinear ball-screw inerter

This paper investigates the influence of ball-screw inerter nonlinearities on the vibration isolation performance of the vehicle suspension system. That is achieved by building a nonlinear mechanics model of the ball-screw inerter with friction in ball-screw assembly and elastic effect of screw. The parameters of the nonlinear mechanics model are identified using recursive least squares algorithm based on test data. Then, the nonlinear ball-screw inerter is applied to vehicle suspension analysis of the half-car model with three passive suspension layouts. The performance of the vehicle suspension system with the nonlinear ball-screw inerter is compared with that with the linear inerter. It is demonstrated from the results that the vibration isolation performance of the vehicle suspension system is slightly influenced by considering the ball-screw inerter nonlinearities in general. The influence of the ball-screw inerter nonlinearities on every performance indicator for different suspension layouts is discussed finally.     

Analysis of vehicle ownership evolution in Montreal,Canada using pseudo panel analysis

This paper employs a pseudo-panel approach to study vehicle ownership evolution in Montreal region, Canada using cross-sectional origin–destination survey datasets of 1998, 2003 and 2008. Econometric modeling approaches that simultaneously accommodate the influence of observed and unobserved attributes on the vehicle ownership decision framework are implemented. Specifically, we estimate generalized versions of the ordered response model—including the generalized, scaled- and mixed-generalized ordered logit models. Socio-demographic variables that impact household’s decision to own multiple cars include number of full and part-time working adults, license holders, middle aged adults, retirees, male householders, and presence of children. Increased number of bus stops, longer bus and metro lengths within the household residential location buffer area decrease vehicle fleet size of households. The observed results also varied across years as manifested by the significance of the interaction terms of some of the variables with the time elapsed since 1998 variable. Moreover, variation due to unobserved factors are captured for part-time working adults, number of bus stops, and length of metro lines. In terms of the effect of location of households, we found that some neighborhoods exhibited distinct car ownership temporal dynamics over the years.     

The Incorporation of Passenger Connectivity and Intermodal Considerations in Intercity Transport Planning

Congested road and air networks, coupled with the idea that transport systems should be balanced, have spawned the field of intercity intermodal passenger transport which is based on travel across connected networks that is as seamless as possible. There is a very large number of attributes that affect the objective and subjective quality of travel. Intercity public transport planning therefore requires an excellent understanding of connections between different services and how the quality of these connections affects passengers, operators and the society at large. This article reviews the vast literature over the last 20 years from Europe, North America and Asia that is related to intercity travel, the connectivity of transport and cooperation between different modes of transport and presents a simple yet powerful way to perceive connected transport systems. The article then reviews planning practice at a variety of states worldwide, and suggests a set of focus areas of research or gaps that once filled, the authors expect, will allow further development of connected intercity passenger travel.     

Automatic calibration of fundamental diagram for first‐order macroscopic freeway traffic models

Despite its importance in macroscopic traffic flow modeling, comprehensive method for the calibration of fundamental diagram is very limited. Conventional empirical methods adopt a steady state analysis of the aggregate traffic data collected from measurement devices installed on a particular site without considering the traffic dynamics, which renders the simulation may not be adaptive to the variability of data. Nonetheless, determining the fundamental diagram for each detection site is often infeasible. To remedy these, this study presents an automatic calibration method to estimate the parameters of a fundamental diagram through a dynamic approach. Simulated flow from the cell transmission model is compared against the measured flow wherein an optimization merit is conducted to minimize the discrepancy between model‐generated data and real data. The empirical results prove that the proposed automatic calibration algorithm can significantly improve the accuracy of traffic state estimation by adapting to the variability of traffic data when compared with several existing methods under both recurrent and abnormal traffic conditions. Results also highlight the robustness of the proposed algorithm. The automatic calibration algorithm provides a powerful tool for model calibration when freeways are equipped with sparse detectors, new traffic surveillance systems lack of comprehensive traffic data, or the case that lots of detectors lose their effectiveness for aging systems. Furthermore, the proposed method is useful for off‐line model calibration under abnormal traffic conditions, for example, incident scenarios. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Empirical assessment of urban traffic congestion

This paper presents an empirical assessment of urban traffic congestion in Central London, UK. Compared with freeways or motorways, urban networks are relatively less studied because of its complexity and availability of required traffic data. This paper introduces the use of automatic number plate recognition technology to analyze the characteristic of urban traffic congestion in Central London. We also present the use of linear regression to diagnose the observed congestion and attribute them to different causes. In particular, we distinguish the observed congestion into two main components: one due to recurrent factors and the other due to nonrecurrent factors. The methodologies are illustrated through a case study of Central London Area. It is found that about 15% of the observed congestion in the region is due to nonrecurrent factors such as accidents, roadwork, special events, and strikes. Given the significance of London, the study will be valuable for transport policy evaluation and appraisal in other global cities. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Public responses to policies designed to internalise environmental and social externalities from road transport in New Zealand

Based on a public survey of registered voters, we explore four options for internalising the social and environmental costs of road transport. The options were presented together with generalised factual information about their benefits and costs. Respondents are highly supportive of fuel use efficiency standards and exhaust gas quality standards, with lesser support for proposed initiatives of road user charges and speed reduction. Demographic analysis of responses enables identification of those who might favour or oppose particular options. In this case women are identified as being strongly supportive of the speed reduction option.     

Panama Canal expansion: alleviating global climate change

This paper quantifies likely changes in greenhouse gas emissions which contribute to anthropogenic climate change, resulting from the expansion of the Panama Canal and the consequent increase in ship-borne commercial transportation from east Asia to the US east coast. Ocean transportation offers higher fuel economy and lower pollutant emissions compared with land transport. Additionally, truck and train transportation of cargo along the US land bridge threatens to overwhelm existing highway and rail systems and limit economic growth. The alternate transportation route for easterly transit of the Panama Canal will reduce overland traffic congestion and enhance economic development by maintaining freight flow efficiency.