Arterial Traffic Analysis

Coordination of Fixed Time Traffic Signals

Dr. Gang-Len Chang

Professor and Director of
Traffic Safety and Operations Lab.
University of Maryland-College Park
Basic principles of signal control
Common cycle length
Tim-space diagram
ideal offset: exactly the offset : as the first vehicle
of a platoon just arrives at the downstream signal, it
turns green.
Relation between the estimated progress
speed and actual platoon speed will affect
the actual bandwidth.
Progression nature
Illustration of the Effects of Offset on Stops and Delay (a given secenario)
Rough Guidelines for Sectionalization
Friction Level
Maximum Intersection Spacing for
Coordination
Low < 2,500 feet
Medium < 1,500 feet
High < 800 feet
Illustration case
Evaluation of progression control
Bandwidth efficiency:
(bandwidth)/cycle length x 100 = (40 -50 %) good
. Bandwidth capacity: the number of vehicles that can
pass through a series of signals without stopping.
= 3600 (bandwidth) x (no. of lanes)/C. H (sat. headway)
. Bandwidth platoon speed
. Number of coordinated intersections
Different coordination types
When internal queues are sufficiently large; the downstream signal must
turn green before the upstream signal to allow sufficient time for queue
to moving before the arrival of platoon. (reverse progression)
 TIME-SPACE DIAGRAM FOR MAIN
STREET NORMAL OFF-PEAK
CONDITIONS
TIME IN SECONDS

WORKING LINE
TIME SCALE

LENGTH
CYCLE

0 250 500 750 DISTANCE IN FEET

DISTANCE SCALE
MAIN STREET

Fig. 1 BASIC LAYOUT FOR CONSTRUCTING TIME-SPACE DIAGRAM.

 TIME-SPACE DIAGRAM FOR MAIN
STREET NORMAL OFF-PEAK
CONDITIONS
One Cycle

Yellow Phase

Green Phase
TIME IN SECONDS

Red Phase

Green plus Yellow Phase

Centered on Working Line
Cycle per
1000 ft
A
TIME SCALE

LENGTH
CYCLE

Cycle
Length

0 250 500 750 1000 DISTANCE IN FEET

DISTANCE SCALE

Fig. 2 LAYOUT OF PHASES AT FIRST INTERSECTION.

 TIME-SPACE DIAGRAM FOR MAIN
STREET NORMAL OFF-PEAK
CONDITIONS
TIME IN SECONDS

B
TIME SCALE

LENGTH

A
CYCLE

0 250 500 750 1000 DISTANCE IN FEET

DISTANCE SCALE
MAIN STREET

Fig. 3 LAYOUT OF PHASES AT THE SECOND AND THIRD INTERSECTIONS.

 TIME-SPACE DIAGRAM FOR MAIN
STREET NORMAL OFF-PEAK
CONDITIONS
TIME IN SECONDS

B
TIME SCALE

LENGTH

A
CYCLE

0 250 500 750 1000 DISTANCE IN FEET

DISTANCE SCALE
MAIN STREET

Fig. 4 LAYOUT OF PHASES AT FOURTH INTERSECTION.

 TIME-SPACE DIAGRAM FOR MAIN
STREET NORMAL OFF-PEAK
CONDITIONS
TIME IN SECONDS

B
TIME SCALE

LENGTH

A
CYCLE

0 250 500 750 1000 DISTANCE IN FEET

DISTANCE SCALE
MAIN STREET

Fig. 6 LAYOUT OF PHASES AT SIXTH INTERSECTION.

 TIME-SPACE DIAGRAM FOR MAIN
STREET NORMAL OFF-PEAK
CONDITIONS

D
TIME IN SECONDS

B
TIME SCALE

LENGTH

A
CYCLE

0 250 500 750 1000 DISTANCE IN FEET

DISTANCE SCALE
MAIN STREET

Fig. 7 LAYOUT OF PHASES AT SEVENTH INTERSECTION.

 TIME-SPACE DIAGRAM FOR MAIN
STREET NORMAL OFF-PEAK
CONDITIONS

D
TIME IN SECONDS

CC

B
TIME SCALE

LENGTH

A
CYCLE

0 250 500 750 1000 DISTANCE IN FEET

DISTANCE SCALE
MAIN STREET

Fig. 8 LAYOUT OF PHASES AT EIGHTH INTERSECTION.

 TIME-SPACE DIAGRAM FOR MAIN
STREET NORMAL OFF-PEAK
CONDITIONS
E

D
TIME IN SECONDS

B
TIME SCALE

LENGTH

A
CYCLE

0 250 500 750 1000 DISTANCE IN FEET

DISTANCE SCALE
MAIN STREET

Fig. 9 LAYOUT OF PHASES AT NINTH INTERSECTION.

 TIME-SPACE DIAGRAM FOR MAIN
STREET NORMAL OFF-PEAK
CONDITIONS
TIME IN SECONDS

Bond
Width
TIME SCALE

LENGTH
CYCLE

0 250 500 750 1000 DISTANCE IN FEET

DISTANCE SCALE
MAIN STREET

Fig. 10 COMPLETED TIME-SPACE DIAGRAM.

Offsets on a Two-Way Street Are Not Independent
Sum of offsets to two opposite directions in one link
equal = N. cycle length
Impact of Queue vehicles on progression band
 Some potential strategies for overstaurated
networks
Change the control objective: max. throughput
- avoid queue spillback
- avoid starvation (tardy arrival of traffic)
- managing the queue formation to yield the
highest service rate across the stop bar.

Fully utilize storage capacity: to confine the congestion

to a limited area by managing queue formation.
Provide equitable service: allocate service to cross-
traffic and to left-turners so that all travelers
are serviced adequately.
 Signal remedies
- Metering plans:
- shorter cycle lengths
- Equity Offsets
- Imbalanced split
Signal metering plans
Internal metering: the use of control strategies within a
congested network so as to influence the distribution of
vehicles arriving or departing from a critical location.
Internal metering for overstaurated networks
Internal metering:
Control the volume being discharged at
intersections upstream of a critical
intersection creating moving storage.
Limit the turn-in flow from cross-streets,
thus preserving the arterial for through
flows.
Metering in the face of a back-up from
outside.
External metering
Control of the major access points to the target
system so that inflow rates into the system are
limited if the system is already too congested.
Shorter cycle lengths for overstaturated
networks
Long cycle in congested networks of short
links is likely to cause queue spillback.
Increasing the cycle length does not
substantially increase the capacity of the
intersection.
As the cycle length increase, so do the
stored queue lengths and the length of
discharged platoons.
Critical flow rate x number veh. Per cycle x
space per veh (D). Should be les than the link
length
Compute the max. cycle length for
oversaturated network from the link length,
average vehicle length, and critical flow rate.
Equity offset
If the queue length approaches the link length,
progression is no longer meaningful, as it is unlikely
that some queue vehicles and arriving vehicles can
pass the downstream intersection.
The cross-street traffic at the upstream intersection
is probably poorly served due to intersection
blockage.
Equity offset
Given the green time to clear the queue
vehicles at a target intersection
Switch the green time to the side street
when the queues begin to clear so no vehicle
from upstream can continue to move to the
link.
Then, give the cross street the opportunity
to pass through the intersection.
Ideal Offset with Queue Filling Block
offset = L/S (speed) Q (queue vehicles). H (form forward
to simultaneous, to reverser progression.
Example
Traffic from B to A ( a critical intersection); link length = 400 ft
At A intersection: 7:00 is GREEN for 70 s
Take 35 s to clear link queue
Time from B to A is 20 s
Offset = 20 -35 = - 15 s
B green time will starts at 7:15 (reverse progression)
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Another design (intersection blockage occurs): 7:35 give green to the
side street for 20 s.
B green time start at 7:55s.