CONTRAM is a traffic assignment model for use in the design of traffic management schemes. The model predicts vehicle routes, flows and queues in a network of streets and junctions; junctions may be controlled by traffic signals or 'give-way' rules. It is assumed that the numbers of trips between each origin and destination are known and that they may vary with time so that the growth and decay of congestion in peak periods can be studied. Allowance is made for the physical size of queues which may block back and restrict the throughput capacity at upstream junctions. Up to three classes of vehicles (e.g. cars, buses and lorries) can be represented, and selected vehicles (usually buses) can be sent along fixed routes. CONTRAM provides comprehensive information on traffic conditions, including link delay times, turning movements and fuel consumption, to help the traffic engineer to understand and assess the merits of alternative traffic management schemes. This user guide gives a brief description of the model, details of data input and output, a test example to illustrate the use of the model and an outline of the structure and operation of the computer program. (Author/publisher)
Abstract