Behavioral Simulation: Towards High-Density Network Traffic Studies

Abstract

Simulation modeling is an increasingly popular and effective tool for analyzing a wide variety of dynamical problems. Road traffic is an example of such problems. Road traffic constitutes a dynamic problem associated with complex processes. These processes are characterized by the interaction of the elements of the system: road users, infrastructures and operators. Traffic can be considered as a supply and demand problem whose difficulty relies on two opposite postulates. The offer responds to a collective use: the road network is dimensioned to allow a certain flow. The demand is individual: each driver wishes to travel under its conditions. Therefore the characteristics of the traffic imply strong constraints for the modeling. Different types of traffic simulation models exist (Lieberman 1997). According to its granularity, a simulation model can be macroscopic or microscopic. A macroscopic model describes the traffic stream, which is represented in some aggregate manner by scalar values of flow rate, density and speed. A microscopic model considers all the vehicles as individuals and the fundamental interactions take the form of mathematical formulas. All these traffic simulation models describe traffic in statistical formats. In addition to these models, the INRETS (French National Institute for Research in Transportation and Safety) has done some research on road traffic simulation based on the real driver behavior for more than ten years and has developed a behavioral simulation model.