The application is described of visual display techniques generated by a digital computer to the problem of evaluating alternative traffic-engineering improvements in congested urban networks. Stanford research institute has developed a tool to be used by the traffic engineer in such evaluations. It is a computer simulation called the dynamic highway transportation model (dhtm). problems arise when a user tries to analyze the large amounts of multidimensional simulation output produced by dhtm. to make the dhtm method practical for the traffic engineer, cathode-ray tube display equipment, in conjunction with a cdc 3100 computer located at sri, and a computer programming language designed for use by a traffic engineer are applied to the evaluation problem. Maps with overlays of volumes, speeds along streets, delays at intersections and routes between selected origin-destination pairs can be called for from the display console and shown instantaneously. Plots of demand and delay for all or selected elements of the traffic networks can be called. A number of measures of the quality of traffic service can be specified and evaluated easily while the traffic engineer is sitting at the console. Technical feasibility of the display concepts is demonstrated. The cost of operating the cdc 3100 display system located at sri is about $80 per hour. With the technical and economic feasibility in hand, further demonstrations with practicing traffic engineers using the tools of the evaluation methodology should be forthcoming. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting