Arterial Management and Traffic Signal Systems

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Arterial Management and Traffic Signal Systems

• Pamela Crenshaw
• Arterial Management Program Manager
• Federal Highway Administration
• June 3, 2003

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Arterial Management Program

• The Arterial Management Program overall goals
• Advance the current state of the practice
• development and updating of guidance materials,
  handbooks, courses, and tools that operators need
  to effectively manage arterial traffic.
• improving the reliability and accuracy of
  existing systems through proper design,
  installation, and maintenance.
• Advance the state of the art.
• Short and long term research.
• Close the gap between the state of the practice
  and the state of the art
• Field Operational Tests

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Divided into 9 tracksEach track differs in a
balance of research and development and
deployment support.Technical support and is
intended to improve the state of the
practice.Short and long term research is
intended to improve the state of the art in
arterial management

• Arterial Management Program

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Arterial Management Program

• The individual topic areas fit together to form
  the Program

Traffic Control Traffic Signal Timing
Small Communities
Detectors
Advanced Signal Control
Arterial Operations
Weather
Traffic Signal Pre-emption and Priority
Traffic Signal Systems
Cross Cutting
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Adaptive Signal Control

• Monitor Traffic flow and adapt automatically to
  move vehicles safely and efficiently as demand
  changes
• Completed ACS FOTs
• Developed the ACS Lite prototype algorithm
• Planned
• Field test of ACS Lite
• Outreach on ACS Building Demand
• Future ACS Lite enhancements

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Adaptive Signal Control ACS LITE

• FHWA ACS research
• Limited U.S. deployment of ACS
• 90 of signal systems are closed-loop systems
• 1999 ACS Survey of agencies ITE Roundtable
• 70 said ACS too costly
• 40 were unconvinced of benefits over TOD/TRPS
• ACS too sensitive/dependent on communications
  detectors
• Closed-loop systems most prevalent

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Adaptive Signal Control ACS LITE

• WIDELY DEPLOYABLE Adaptive Control
• Low cost design
• Work with closed-loop systems
• Work without connectivity to TMC
• Leverage existing vehicle actuated controllers
• Leverage existing actuated detector layouts
• Leverage previous ACS research
• Prototype software to be tested with CORSIM in
  TReL (Oct 03)

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Traffic Control and Traffic Signal Timing

• Train our traditional audience. Reiterate and
  reinforce standard acceptable practices. Provide
  training by means of distance learning. Convene
  a forum to discuss and debate issues.
• Traffic Control Signalization and Software course
  is being updated.
• Update Traffic Control Systems Handbook
• Signal Timing Process Investigation
• - Recommended Practice/Informational
  Report w/ITE
• Market and Promote the use of 402 Safety Funds
  for traffic signal retiming
• Traffic Signal Courses Web course

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Traffic Control and Traffic Signal Timing

• PLANNED
• Annual Traffic Signal Workshop
• E-Learning Course-Traffic Signal Design w/ITE
• Develop Guidance for establishing MOEs for
  signal retiming.
• Traffic Signal Re-Timing Life-Cycle Costing

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Detectors

• Improving detector reliability and durability
• Current
• Updated the Detector Handbook
• Planned
• Queue detection/actuated signal control logic
• CD ROM Detector Course
• Life Cycle costs of various detectors

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Small Communities

• To identify and deploy ITS and traffic management
  strategies in small urban and rural communities
  where congestion is growing the fastest
• Current
• Benefit study completed and published
• Performance Measures for Small Communities
• Small Communities Video
• Small Communities Handbook
• Planned
• Telecommunications in small communities
• Toolbox being developed
• ITS for Small Communities Workshop

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Traffic Signal Systems

• Develop technical guidance and tools for
  operating traffic signal systems accurately and
  reliably
• Sample contract and procurement guidance
• Cross-jurisdictional signal coordination
• Computerized Traffic Signal Systems Course Primer
• Planned
• Signals system operations in saturated conditions
• Signal system operation under emergency
  conditions
• Computerized Signal System course updated

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Weather

• Assess current practices of traffic management
  during adverse weather conditions, develop
  weather related traffic management strategies
• Current
• Scoping the issues white paper
• Assessing state of the practice
• Planned
• Establishing weather-based traffic management
  practices
• Weather-related traffic management field test

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Arterial Operations

• Covers developing and deploying traffic
  management strategies where freeway management or
  incident management systems are integrated on
  arterials and surface streets
• Current
• Update of Communications for Traffic Control
  Systems Handbook
• Emergency vehicle traffic management
• Planned
• Posting of progression speeds on
  arterials
  Arterial/Freeway transition and systems
  integration

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Traffic Signal Priority and Pre-Emption
Investigate the impact of signal pre-emption and
priority on a system. Develop traffic signal
control strategies that are deployable and
acceptable to the practice

• Current
• Pre-emption for emergency vehicles II
• Signal priority control for Transit (with FTA)
• Monitoring standards program implications
• Planned
• Pre-emption for emergency vehicles (with Public
  Safety) Phase III

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Cross Cutting

• Activities include initiatives in other FHWA
  Offices, or our other transportation partners.
• Low Cost Engineering Improvements
• Guidance for Performance-Based Operations
  Contracting
• Development of a National Intersection Safety
  Action Plan
• ITS Pedestrian Safety Countermeasures FOT

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Arterial Management Program
Traffic Control Traffic Signal Timing
Small Communities
Detectors
Advanced Signal Control
Arterial Operations
Weather

• Traffic Signal Systems

Traffic Signal Pre-emption and Priority
Cross Cutting
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Where to Get More Information

• Pam.crenshaw_at_fhwa.dot.gov
• http//www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov
• http//www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/Travel/art_mgmt_toolbx
  2.htm