A signalized crosswalk is a time and space constraint facility, the capacity of which is influenced by bidirectional pedestrian movement as well as external eects such as signal timing and geometry. Actual manuals and literature report dierent descriptions of the capacity of crosswalks. In this paper, pedestrian movement properties on a signalized crosswalk are studied by carrying out a series of experiments under laboratory conditions. The formation of lanes during the movement is analyzed and dierent patterns are observed from video recordings. Not only does the number of lanes in the bidirectional flow depend on the corridor width, but it also depends on the spatial distribution of the leaders in the stream. The influence of the directional split ratio in bidirectional streams on the capacity of crosswalks and crossing time is investigated. The maximum reduction of the capacity occurs at a directional split ratio of 0.5, which agrees with the findings of Alhajyaseen et al, but is dierent from the descriptions in the high capacity manual. However, the observed maximum flow is higher than that in previous studies. By comparing the fundamental diagrams of bidirectional flow on crosswalks and in corridors, it is found that the specific flow of bidirectional movements is less influenced by the density for ρ > 2.0 m −2 in both scenarios, but the values show certain dierences. It indicates that the influence of the directional split flow ratio on PAPER: Interdisciplinary statistical mechanics
Despite the growing interest in macroscopic epidemiological models to deal with threats posed by pandemics such as COVID-19, little has been done regarding the assessment of disease spread in day-to-day life, especially within buildings such as supermarkets where people must obtain necessities at the risk of exposure to disease. Here, we propose an integrated customer shopping simulator including both shopper movement and choice behavior, using a force-based and discrete choice model, respectively. By a simple extension to the force-based model, we implement the following preventive measures currently taken by supermarkets; social distancing and one-way systems, and different customer habits, assessing them based on the average individual disease exposure and the time taken to complete shopping (shopping efficiency). Results show that maintaining social distance is an effective way to reduce exposure, but at the cost of shopping efficiency. We find that the one-way system is the optimal strategy for reducing exposure while minimizing the impact on shopping efficiency. Customers should also visit supermarkets less frequently, but buy more when they do, if they wish to minimize their exposure. We hope that this work demonstrates the potential of pedestrian dynamics simulations in assessing preventative measures during pandemics, particularly if it is validated using empirical data.
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