Both the transport system and the complex air quality system need to be modelled in detail in an integrated way, to manage and control road traffic so that it does not exceed pollution limits. Various independent developments have occurred, which are now integrated in the TRAQS software suite, which was developed in the SIMTRAP project of the European Commission (EC) ESPRIT Programme. The elements of TRAQS include: (1) the development of dynamic traffic simulation software, which can produce detailed emissions calculations (DYNEMO); (2) a continuous improvement in emissions modelling; (3) dynamic three-dimensional (3D) air pollution modelling (DYMOS); (4) high-quality visualisation tools in 3D geographical information systems (GIS); and (5) accessible computing technology. TRAQS integrates DYNEMO and DYMOS with its GIS toolkit. DYNEMO is a traffic flow simulator for both urban and interurban road networks, and has been used to simulate a large part of the German road network. Partial networks can be exported for more detailed simulation applying the microscopic traffic flow model VISSIM. TRAQS can be used in a strategic planning setting, and can be applied to `what-if' scenario analyses, and has been applied in Berlin. Its users can experimentally apply traffic regulation measures and assess their effectiveness.
Abstract