Research On Traffic Equilibrium Analysis And Demand Management For High-occupancy Vehicle Lanes

As one of the traffic solutions to ease urban traffic congestion,ridesharing has received much attention from transport authorities considering its role of efficiently using road resources and convenience for residents.To implement this policy,local governments have intended to provide high-quality road conditions for ridesharing cars by setting high-occupancy vehicle(HOV)lanes in commuting corridors.Target for guiding the commuters’ mode choice and improving the efficiency of traffic corridors,this thesis studies the operations management and impact analysis of HOV lanes approached by the traffic equilibrium model for urban commuting corridors.The main contents of this thesis include the following four parts.(1)Individual heterogeneous traffic network equilibrium studies based on by potential game theory.To depict the choice preferences of travelers,this thesis proposes an individual heterogeneous traffic equilibrium problem based on the traffic network considering the influence of individual user heterogeneity on travelers’ choice and equilibrium state.Assuming that travelers obey the individual user heterogeneity rule regarding the value of time,the value of distance,and additional link cost,this thesis proves that the network equilibrium problem is equivalent to the potential game problem.Best response algorithms for the individual heterogeneous traffic network equilibrium problem are further proposed.Numerical results reveal that the mathematical model and solution algorithm for the traffic network equilibrium problem with atomic heterogeneity can efficiently compute the equilibrium strategy,and also demonstrate the characteristics of system conditions and commuters’ choice behavior under equilibrium conditions.(2)High-occupancy vehicle lane equilibrium analysis based on by individual user heterogeneity.To explore the effect of individual attribute differences of commuters on their travel choices,this thesis proposes an individual heterogeneous traffic equilibrium model based on commuting corridors.Assuming that commuters obey the individual user heterogeneity rule regarding the value of time and additional carpool costs,this thesis proposes the concept of the full set of equilibrium strategy profiles,gives the definition of three types of commuters,namely,the carpooling single-choice type,solo-driving singlechoice type,and double-choice type,and further analyzes the relationships between commuter types and two heterogeneous attributes.Based on the best-response algorithm,a novel solution algorithm for equilibrium strategy is proposed for computing.Numerical results reveal the following insights: the additional carpooling costs of carpooling singlechoice commuters are smaller than the solo-driving single-choice commuters and the costs the double-choice commuters are between them,while the relationship between commuter type and the value of time is uncertain and needs further discussions.(3)Congestion pricing schemes of high-occupancy vehicle lanes considering multiclass users.To investigate the impact of commuters’ additional carpool cost differences on typical system states and congestion pricing schemes,this thesis develops a multi-type traffic equilibrium model under the background of commuter corridors.Assuming that commuter corridors are with an additional urban rail line and that commuters obey multiclass user heterogeneity rule regarding additional carpool costs,this thesis analyzes the characteristics of the equilibrium state about commuter choice and operate of the system,proposes the optimum state and the time-saving state based on two demand management objectives and depicts their relationships.The multi-class traffic equilibrium model affected by the congestion pricing scheme is further proposed to analyze the pricing schemes based on two management objectives.Numerical results reveal that the additional carpooling cost of rail transit commuters is larger than that of HOV commuters under equilibrium and optimum state,while commuters’ choice behaviors will not be affected by the additional carpooling cost.Besides,more commuters will choose the rail transit modal under the optimum state than the equilibrium state.(4)Typical tradable credit scheme studies considering high-occupancy vehicle lanes.To explore the effects of high-occupancy vehicle saturation on typical system states and tradable credit schemes,this thesis develops a classical traffic equilibrium model based on commuter corridors for two typical conditions.The relationship between the equilibrium state and optimum state is firstly analyzed under the regular conditions.The conventional traffic equilibrium model is then extended to incorporate credit schemes,in which three kinds of credit schemes(e.g.,feasible,efficient,and optimal)are defined,and their characteristics are analyzed.Further,the traffic equilibrium model under the saturated condition is proposed allowing regular carpooling commuters using general-purpose lanes,in which commuters’ choice behaviors are analyzed.The traffic equilibrium model with a credit scheme is developed subsequently to define the optimum state and second-best state and analyze their relationships.Meanwhile,this thesis also defines the feasible,efficient,second-best,and optimal scheme,and analyzes their characteristics under the saturated condition.Numerical results reveal that the authorities will charge higher credit for commuters who choose the general-purpose lanes with the optimal scheme under the regular condition,while the optimal scheme may not exist under the saturated condition.