The current starting point of most of the advanced traffic and transport projects - either aimed at conducting the analysis of an already existing system, the design of a future system, the evaluation of the potential impacts of a future intervention, or the design and operation of an advanced system - combines the ideas, wishes and objectives of the user, usually a traffic authority, with the requirement to exploit as far as possible the available related information: traffic data, digital maps, etc. The modelling and analysis requirements ask for a new working environment purposely conceived and designed to efficiently assist and support the analyst in all steps of the traffic and transportation studies, and at the same time expand the territory of traffic simulation: from transport and traffic analysis to support operational applications (i.e. traffic management). AIMSUN NG is a working environment conceived to support such methodological approach to transport analysis, which integrates modules purposely designed and developed to support the traffic and transportation analysis tools / algorithms to address the different types of traffic and transportation problems of interest. The main components for Transportation Analysis currently integrated in AIMSUN NG are described. ITS applications have also generated new ways of using microsimulation to design and evaluate traffic management strategies and support the decision making processes This has been specifically addressed in a the System Analysis Module, another component of the software environment, that includes the possibility of working in real time combined with ALMO, a structured and geographically referenced traffic data-tool that merges different data assets and who manages among other things traffic data, traffic messages, weather data or event calendars. By means of an intelligent filter it is possible to restore the data asset corresponding to a special traffic situation. For the covering abstract please see ITRD E135207.
Abstract