A parallel meta-heuristic for solving a multiple asymmetric traveling salesman problem with simulateneous pickup and delivery modeling demand responsive transport problems

Abstract

Transportation is an essential area in the nowadays society. Due to the rapid technological progress, it has gained a great importance, both for business sector and citizenry. Among the different types of transport, one that has gained notoriety recently is the transportation on-demand, because it can affect very positively the people quality of life. There are different kinds of on-demand transportation systems, being the Demand Responsive Transit (DRT) one of the most important one. In this work, a real-life DRT problem is proposed, and modeled as a Rich Traveling Salesman Problem. Specifically, the problem presented is a Multiple Asymmetric Traveling Salesman Problem with Simultaneous Pickup and Delivery. Furthermore, a benchmark for this new problem is also proposed, and its first resolution is offered. For the resolution of this benchmark the recently developed Golden Ball meta-heuristic has been implemented.