Optimal control based heuristic for congestion reduction in traffic networks

Abstract

The principal purpose of this work is to test the TUC strategy in a simple case using a micro-simulator designed ad hoc, previous to its real implementation. Using concepts of traffic engineering we describe a well known dynamic linear model of traffic flow in a urban traffic network that is controlled using the traffic-light times. This simplified model allows to obtain a Riccati feedback matrix and compute traffic-light times that will improve the congestion levels. We present some numerical experiments made with the model on an academic example and we validated them with a microscopic simulator that we have created based on Car Following theory and discrete event models.