This paper presents the modeling process and evaluation approach used for the operational analysis of construction staging and route diversion. The approach was implemented to evaluate traffic operations and to recommend specific traffic management strategies (ITS, travel demand management (TDM), traffic engineering, etc.) during the planned reconstruction of the urbanized section of I-235 in Des Moines, IA. MITSIMLab, a Microscopic Traffic SIMulation Laboratory model developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was used for operational analysis. It consists of two components: Microscopic Traffic SIMulator (MITSIM) and Traffic Management Simulator (TMS). MITSIM is responsible for realistically modeling vehicles' movements whereas TMS mimics the operations of traffic control center. MITSIM models the traffic in the network and represents the "real world" for MITSIMLab.
Abstract