The effect of distances between vehicles on time and speed in simulated traffic flow

Abstract

The paper presents an analytical derivation of the dependence between vehicle speed and traffic density in urban traffic conditions. It was shown that the speed function is hyperbolic and depends on the density of traffic flow, the average vehicle length and the value of expected distances between vehicles E(T) expressed in time units. A number of computer simulations were performed on the basis of a defined relationship in order to study the effect of the E(T) value on the parameters of simulated traffic flow. The average speed and time of traveling the route from the starting point to the destination were tested in the conducted simulations. It was proved that the change in the E(T) parameter in a range between 1 s to 4 s results in a change in the average travel time from 6.6% to 35.6% and a change in average speed from 3.0% to 18.0%, depending on the number of vehicles in the simulation.