Effect of speed limits in degradable transport networks

Abstract

This paper studies how link-specific speed limits influence the performance of degradable transport networks, in which the capacity of each link is a degradable random variable. The distribution and cumulative distribution of link travel time have been presented with the effect of speed limits taken into account. The mean and variance of link and route travel time are formulated. Three link states have been classified, and their physical meanings have been discussed. The relationship between critical capacity, travel time and speed limit has been elaborated. We have proposed a Speed Limit- and Reliability-based User Equilibrium (SLRUE), adopting travel time budget as the principle of travelers’ route choice. A heuristic method employing the method of successive averages is developed to solve the SLRUE in degradable networks. Through numerical studies, we find that for some networks both the mean and standard deviation of the total travel time could be reduced simultaneously by imposing some speed limits. The speed limit design problem has been studied, and it is found that imposing speed limits cannot always reduce the total travel time budget of a network.