Abstract
This paper evaluated in an integrated manner the traffic performance, pollutant emissions and road conflicts between bicycles and motor vehicles at a signalized intersection. Two alternative scenarios were examined: (1) bicycles increment and motor vehicles replacement within the cycle-fixed traffic signal; (2) replacing the existing traffic control by a conventional two-lane roundabout and evaluating the impacts of bicycles increment. For each scenario, bicycle demand was varied from 9 to 270 bicycles per hour (bph). Traffic flow and vehicle dynamic data were collected from a three-leg signalized intersection in Aveiro (Portugal). The microscopic traffic model (VISSIM) paired with an emission (Vehicle Specific Power – VSP) methodology and safety (Surrogate Safety Assessment Methodology – SSAM) model were used to assess intersection-specific operations. The fast Non-Dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm (NSGA-II) was used to find the optimal bicycle demands. The results showed that two-lane roundabout outperformed the existing traffic control, namely in highest bicycle demand scenario (number of stops and travel time reduced in 78 and 14%, respectively; CO2, NOx, and HC decreased 9, 7, and 12%, respectively). It was also found that the number of conflicts was significantly reduced (–49%) with this latter layout even in maximum bicycle demand scenario (270 bph). However, roundabout layout lead to more severe conflicts and potential crashes. The analysis showed that bicycle demands of 75, 95 and 110 bph delivered good environmental and safety outcomes for the intersection.
Highlights
Introduction and objectivesCycling demand is increasing every day, notably in highdensity areas (Pucher, Buehler 2008)
This paper addressed the impact of bicycle demand at a three-leg signalized intersection on traffic performance, vehicular emissions and safety
The paper proposed a solution for the intersection by replacing existing traffic light for a two-lane roundabout and compare the results between layouts subjected to increments in the number of bicycle users
Summary
Introduction and objectivesCycling demand is increasing every day, notably in highdensity areas (Pucher, Buehler 2008). Bicycle is one of the most important alternatives to motor vehicle, and for short distances might be the best alternative to go easy and fast when the vehicles must stop because of traffic congestion. They are often quicker than motor vehicles over short distances of up to 5 km (DTMR 2018). Due to the complexity of intersections, high traffic volumes and densities, the interactions of vehicle-to-vehicle and bicycle-to-vehicle are steadily increased. This means that there is a higher risk for motor vehicles and bicycles crashes at intersections, compared to other urban network areas (Götschi et al 2016)
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