CIVL 2700/9700

Transport Systems
Topic 2: Transport Network Modelling (Traffic Assignment)

Reza Mohajerpoor

CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 1

 Relevance to Real-world problems
Ø What are the transport implications of building a new infrastructure (e.g. WestConnex)?

Ø How the traffic situation (flow) will change if M4 is no longer tolled?

Ø Which street is the best to install an advertisement billboard on to maximize the user
view?

Ø Which bus route (e.g. bus number 438 perhaps) is the best to consider for
advertisement-on-bus to maximize the user view?
CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 2
 Relevance to Real-world problems
Ø Assuming a higher usage of Electric Vehicles (EVs) in Sydney, where should the charging
stations be built?

Ø Which street to be tolled in CBD to maximize the toll revenue of the City of Sydney?

Ø Which street to be tolled in CBD to minimize the total delay time in CBD?

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Agenda
• Introduction
• Performance Function
• User Equilibrium (UE)
• Braess Paradox
• System Optimum (SO)
• Congestion Pricing

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 Introduction
• Human’s decision making in transport systems

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 Introduction
• Let us assume total traffic demand [veh/time] between Origins (O)
and Destinations (D) are known x1

x2
• Traffic assignment (route choice) question is:
Which routes are utilized to what extent [veh/time]?

• Decisions are primarily a function of route travel time that are

determined by route traffic flow

• The mathematical relationship between route travel time and route

traffic flow is called a Performance Function

• Classic equilibrium problem (traffic assignment)

CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 7
 Performance Function
• The mathematical relationship between route travel time
and route traffic flow is called a Performance Function

• The simplest relationship: linear

• More realistic: nonlinear relationship

CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 8

 Theory of User Equilibrium
• Two important assumptions
i. travellers select routes based only on route travel times
ii. travellers know all the travel times on all the available routes

• User equilibrium (UE):

o when individual travellers cannot improve their travel times by unilaterally
changing routes
o “The travel time between a specified origin and destination on all used routes is
equal, and less than or equal to the travel time that would be experienced by a
traveller on any unused route” (Wardrop)

CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 9

 Example
Two highways serve a busy corridor with a traffic demand that is fixed at 6000 vehicles
during the peak hour (1 hour). The performance functions for the two routes are

t1 = 4 + 5(x1/c1) and t2 = 3 + 7(x2/c2)

where t’s are in minutes and flows (x’s) and capacities (c’s) are in vehicles per hour. Initially,
the capacities of routes 1 and 2 are 4400 veh/h and 5200 veh/h, respectively.

a. Find the total travel time on the network assuming that UE condition hold.
b. If a highway reconstruction project cuts the capacity of route 2 to 2200 veh/h, how many
additional vehicle hours of travel time will be added in the corridor assuming that UE
condition hold?
CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 10
 Example (solution 1)
a. Find the total travel time on the network assuming that UE conditions hold.
At UE and if both routes are used then 𝑡! = 𝑡" The number The number
of vehicles of vehicles
𝑥!+ 𝑥" = 6000 [veh/h] using route using route
𝑥! 𝑥" 2 during the 1 during the
4+5 =3+7 1 peak hour 1 peak hour
𝑐! 𝑐"
6000 − 𝑥" 𝑥" Total travel time is:
4+5 =3+7 𝑡! 2851 ×2851×1
4400 5200
30000 5𝑥" 7𝑥" + 𝑡" 3149 ×3149×1
1+ − = = 7.24×2851 + 7.24×3149
4400 4400 5200
7.82 = 0.00248𝑥" = 43440 [[Link]]
𝑥" ≈ 3149[veh/h]
𝑥! ≈ 2851 [veh/h] both routes are used
CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 11
 Example (solution 2)
b. If a highway reconstruction project cuts the capacity of route 2 to 2200 veh/h, how many
additional vehicle hours of travel time will be added in the corridor assuming that UE
condition hold? The number of The number of
vehicles using route 2 vehicles using
At UE and if both routes are used then 𝑡! = 𝑡" during the 1 peak hour route 1 during
𝑥! + 𝑥" = 6000 Total travel time is: the 1 peak hour
𝑥! 𝑥"
4+5 =3+7 𝑡! 4189 ×4189×1
𝑐! 𝑐"
6000 − 𝑥" 𝑥" + 𝑡" 1811 ×1811×1
4+5 =3+7
4400 2200 = 8.76×4189 + 8.76×1811
30000 5𝑥" 7𝑥" = 52560 [[Link]]
1+ − =
4400 4400 2200
7.82 = 0.00432𝑥" Additional hours is:
𝑥" ≈ 1811 [veh/h] 52560 − 43440 = 9120 [[Link]]
𝑥! ≈ 4189 [veh/h] both routes are used #!"$
= 152 [veh.h]
%$
CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 12
 Example
Two routes connect a city and a suburb. During the peak-hour (1 hour) morning
commute, a total of 4500 vehicles travel from the suburb to the city. Route 1 has a 100
km/h speed limit and is 10 km in length; route 2 is 5 km in length with a 75 km/h speed
limit. Studies show that the travel time on route 1 increases two minutes for every
additional 500 vehicles added. Minutes of travel time on route 2 increase with the
square of the number of vehicles, expressed in thousands of vehicles. Determine user-
equilibrium travel times.

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 Example (solution)
Free flow Route 1: 10/100*60=6 [min]
Free flow Route 2: 5/75*60=4 [min]
𝑡! = 6 + 4𝑥!
𝑡" = 4 + 𝑥""
𝑞 = 𝑥! + 𝑥" = 4.5
First: to determine whether or not both routes are used
6 + 4𝑥! = 4 + 𝑥""
6 + 4(4.5 − 𝑥") = 4 + 𝑥"" Ø What is the value of q’?
𝑥" = 2.899 [103 veh] Ø If less than q’ vehicles travel
𝑥! = 1.601 [103 veh] during the 1 hour peak period,
what are the user equilibrium
𝑡! = 𝑡" = 12.4 [min] travel times?
Total travel time during the peak period (UE):
4500×12.4 = 55800 [[Link]]
CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 14
 Example: the Braess Paradox (1)
Given the original network, determine UE travel times.

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 Example: the Braess Paradox (2)
Now, city council has built a new road (even an
expensive one, e.g. a tunnel).
Given the new network, determine UE travel times.

Implication?

CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 16

 Theory of System Optimum
• Two important assumptions
i. travellers select routes based only on route travel times
ii. travellers know all the travel times on all the available routes

• System Optimum (SO):

o the total travel time for the overall network is minimum.
𝑡! : link n travel time
min 𝑆 𝑥 = ; 𝑥0 𝑡0 𝑥! : the number of vehicle travelling on link n
/
0
subject to
𝑥0 ≥ 0
Inflow=outflow at each node
CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 17
 Example
Two routes connect a city and a suburb. During the peak-hour (1 hour) morning
commute, a total of 4500 vehicles travel from the suburb to the city. Route 1 has a 100
km/h speed limit and is 10 km in length; route 2 is 5 km in length with a 75 km/h speed
limit. Studies show that the travel time on route 1 increases two minutes for every
additional 500 vehicles added. Minutes of travel time on route 2 increase with the
square of the number of vehicles, expressed in thousands of vehicles. Determine the
system-optimum travel time.

CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 18

 Example (solution)
min 𝑆 𝑥 = 𝑥!𝑡! 𝑥! + 𝑥"𝑡" 𝑥"
/! ,/"
s.t.
𝑞 = 𝑥! + 𝑥" ; 𝑥!, 𝑥" ≥ 0

𝑆 𝑥 = 6𝑥! + 4𝑥!" + 4𝑥" + 𝑥"5 = 𝑥"5 + 4𝑥"" − 38𝑥" + 108

d𝑆(𝑥)
= 3𝑥"" + 8𝑥" − 38 = 0
d𝑥"
𝑥" = 2.467 [103 veh]
𝑥! = 2.033 [103 veh] Total travel time during the peak period (SO):
𝑡! = 14.13 [min] 2033×14.13 + 2467×10.09 = 28726.3 + 24892.0 = 53618.3 [[Link]]
Compare this with UE total travel time of 55800!
𝑡" = 10.08 [min]

CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 19

 Congestion Pricing
• User equilibrium (UE):
o when individual travellers cannot improve their travel times generalized travel cost
by unilaterally changing routes
o The travel time generalized travel cost between a specified origin and destination on
all used routes is equal, and less than or equal to the travel time generalized travel
cost that would be experienced by a traveller on any unused route

CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 20

 Example
Two routes connect a city and a suburb. During the peak-hour (1 hour) morning
commute, a total of 4500 vehicles travel from the suburb to the city. Route 1 has a 100
km/h speed limit and is 10 km in length; route 2 is 5 km in length with a 75 km/h speed
limit. Studies show that the travel time on route 1 increases two minutes for every
additional 500 vehicles added. Minutes of travel time on route 2 increase with the
square of the number of vehicles, expressed in thousands of vehicles. If the value of time
is $1 per minute and a toll of $1 is charged for each trip on route 2 determine the travel
times of each route assuming drivers’ behaviour follow generalized travel cost UE
condition.

CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 21

 Example (solution)
𝑡! = 6 + 4𝑥! How much money the city
𝑡" = 4 + 𝑥"" makes in this example?
𝑞 = 𝑥! + 𝑥" = 4.5
First: to determine whether or not both routes are used What is the optimal toll value?
1× 6 + 4𝑥! = 1× 4 + 𝑥"" + 1
6 + 4(4.5 − 𝑥") = 5 + 𝑥"" Repeat the problem with $1
toll for route 1.
𝑥" = 2.796 [103 veh]
𝑥! = 1.704 [103 veh]
𝑡! = 12.8 [min]
𝑡" = 11.8 [min]
Total travel time during the peak period (generalized travel cost UE):
1704×12.8 + 2796×11.8 = 54804 [[Link]]
CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 22
UE, SO, Toll Examples (solution)

UE SO Toll ($1) Optimal toll ($ ??)

𝑥2 1601 2033 1704 2033
𝑥3 2899 2467 2796 2467
𝑡2 12.4 14.13 12.8 14.13
𝑡3 12.4 10.08 11.8 10.08
TTT 55800 53618 54804 53618

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 Thoughts
• Large-scale networks (multiple O-D, extensive route options)
• Multimodal flows (e.g. trucks, buses)
• Stochastic TA: Different cost criteria; perception errors, limited information;
habits
• Static vs. Dynamic Equilibrium
o Time varying demands
o Changing traffic conditions in the network
o Real-time drivers’ diversion (e.g. Incidents)

CIVL2700: Transport Systems - Week 2 24