Metaheuristic approach to optimize placement of detectors in transport networks — case study of Serbia

Abstract

Proper number and optimal location of detectors in transport networks enable early traffic incident detection and collecting other relevant traffic flow data. Increasing number of located detectors in networks provides accuracy of obtained data, while requiring more investments and maintenance cost support. The detectors need to be placed such that they can successfully sample the traffic conditions with the least possible error. On the other hand, traffic authorities tend to minimize the number of located detectors on the network to achieve investment savings. The proposed model provides optimal locations of a finite set of detectors on a highway corridor, taking into account minimization of travel time estimation error and constraints of available capital cost. The bee colony optimization metaheuristic based on the improvement concept is used to solve the formulated problem. The proposed algorithm is tested on a real data collected in the Republic of Serbia.