Advanced Traveler Information Systems (ATIS) and related dynamic route guidance are core components of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS). ATIS provide traffic management and control centers the ability to communicate with suitably equipped road users in real time and supply route guidance instructions. Guidance is usually formulated on the basis of travel time as the sole cost element, with little attention to other costs such as environmental impact or traffic safety. The purpose of this paper is to present network-wide accident prediction models and to investigate the integration of these models with dynamic route choice. Paramics, an ITS-ready microscopic traffic simulator, is employed for this investigation. A small portion of the Toronto network is used as a case study to illustrate the effect of safety considerations on traffic routing and network performance. Several accident prediction models were developed for nodes and links. The application of these models to the sample network shows that accounting for accident risk of road users in route guidance has a major influence on the distribution of traffic, which subsequently reduces the total expected number of accidents on the network. (A*)
Abstract