Lane Change Control Combined with Ramp Metering: A Strategy to Manage Delays at On-Ramp Merging Sections

Abstract

Control measures at merging locations aimed at either the mainline traffic or on-ramp traffic do not lead to a fairness in the distribution of total delay across the two streams. This paper presents a control strategy of combining a lane change control with a ramp metering system at motorway merges. The control strategy presents the opportunity to control the delays incurred at the two traffic streams of the merge. An optimization problem is formulated for a multilane motorway with an on-ramp with the aim to minimize the total travel time of the system. The proposed strategy is tested using an incentive-based lane-specific traffic flow model. Results revealed a 17% reduction in the total travel time due to the proposed strategy. Moreover, it was shown that the distribution of delays over the mainline and on-ramp could be controlled via the proposed strategy. The performance of the combined control was also compared to the individual control measures. It was observed that the individual control measures (lane change only and ramp metering only) lead to high delays on either the mainline or on-ramp compared to the combined control, where the balance between the delay for the drivers on the mainline and on-ramp could be regulated. The combined lane change and ramp metering control presents opportunities for the road authorities to manage the total delay distribution across the two traffic streams.

Automated Traffic State Optimization in the Weaving Area of Urban Expressways by a Reinforcement Learning-Based Cooperative Method of Channelization and Ramp Metering

“…Te cooperation of ramp metering and variable speed limits was proposed for expressways management strategies, which improved the speed of vehicles and reduced gas emissions [16]. Another cooperative method that considered ramp metering (ALI-NEA) and lane change strategies (i.e., encouraging vehicles at inner lanes to change their lanes earlier before entering the weaving area) was introduced, leading to a 4% reduction in the total travel time when compared with only using a separate method [17].…”

Lane‐changing control with balancing lane flow at freeway merge bottlenecks in a connected vehicle environment: Application of a PID controller

“…Even if the demand level of the mainline is low, if the merge flow is relatively high, congestion may occur in the outermost lane due to merging vehicles. Furthermore, the traffic flow in inner lanes can deteriorate due to lane‐changing vehicles entering in advance of the merging section [13]. Kim et al.…”

“…Even if the demand level of the mainline is low, if the merge flow is relatively high, congestion may occur in the outermost lane due to merging vehicles. Furthermore, the traffic flow in inner lanes can deteriorate due to lane-changing vehicles entering in advance of the merging section [13]. Kim et al [14] developed a new LCC strategy to determine the optimal number of lanechanging vehicles at a merge bottleneck and induced CVs to change lanes with consideration of the real-time on-ramp flow.…”