Queue-Based Headway Distribution Models at Signal Controlled Intersection under Mixed Traffic

Abstract

Headway of vehicles during platoon dispersion at signalized intersection is one of the critical microscopic traffic characteristics in traffic flow theory. The distribution of the discharge headways of vehicles also has a significant impact on the traffic generation process in most of the microsimulation approaches. However, few studies have investigated the vehicle discharge headway for interrupted flow at signalized intersections under mixed traffic conditions. The present study uses data collected from 20 intersections in six cities for comprehensive analysis of discharge headway. A box-and-whiskers plot is generated for discharge headway to quantify its reasonable profile. The diagram shows that headway of vehicles decreases with the queue dispersion. A stable headway can be observed after the fifth vehicle position of a queue, giving a saturation headway of 2.05 s per vehicle. Six types of continuous distribution are tested to model the discharge headway distribution. A statistical investigation is also performed to verify the best-fitted model for each vehicle position in a queue. The ranking of a best-fitted distribution is done for each vehicle position as per the statistical significance. This study demonstrates the discharge headway characteristics and distribution at each vehicle position, which can be useful for traffic flow analysis and especially for improving microsimulation models. © National Academy of Sciences: Transportation Research Board 2020.