A Formally Integrated Adaptive Speed Management for Proactive Traffic Safety

Abstract

The emergence of connected autonomous vehicles (CAVs) represents a key development in the quest to enhance traffic safety. CAVs hold significant promise for improving traffic safety and have great potential to contribute to transportation sustainability. However, their safety depends on the accuracy of the programmed rules and algorithms that guide their decision-making process. This paper introduces an adaptive traffic management system that integrates a formal traffic safety rule defined by pre-established bounds for Traffic Conflict Techniques. This system enables dynamic speed adjustments for vehicles violating the traffic safety rule in order to prevent potential collisions. To evaluate the effectiveness of our approach, we study a traffic flow on the SR528 highway in Orlando, Florida, and analyze the behavior of each vehicle in traffic based on extracted traffic safety indicators such as time-to-collision and space headway. This analysis is performed by the traffic safety rule to identify violating vehicles, and the speed update is achieved through the integration of the computer algebra system Mathematica and a micro-simulation tool called SUMO. Our study aims to improve the safety and efficiency of the traffic flow by combining simulation, TCTs analysis, and semi-formal tools like Mathematica to aid in the decision-making process of vehicles during traffic events, particularly shockwaves. Preliminary results demonstrate the efficacy of our approach in mitigating the impact of shockwaves. After applying the speed update, we observe an increase in time-to-collision and space headway. This indicates improved safety and reduced likelihood of collisions. Our findings highlight the potential of adaptive traffic management systems to enhance transportation safety and efficiency.