Statistical characteristics of transitional queue conditions in signalized arterials

The performance of signalized arterials is related to queuing phenomena. The paper investigates the effect of transitional traffic flow conditions imposed by the formation and dissipation of queues. A cross-recurrence quantification analysis combined with Bayesian augmented networks are implemented to reveal the prevailing statistical characteristics of the short-term traffic flow patterns under the effect of transitional queue conditions. Results indicate that transitions between free-flow conditions, critical queue conditions that exceed the detector’s length, as well as the occurrence of spillovers impose a set of prevailing traffic flow patterns with different statistical characteristics with respect to determinism, nonlinearity, non-stationarity and laminarity. The complexity in critical queue conditions is further investigated by introducing two supplementary regions in the critical area before spillover occurrence. Results indicate that the supplementary information on the transitional conditions in the critical area increases the accuracy of the predictive relations between the statistical characteristics of traffic flow evolution and the occurrence of transitions.