Research on the equilibrium speed-density relationship around flyover work zone

Abstract

Increasing traffic demand has already reached the capacity of existing traffic facilities in most cities. In order to alleviate the traffic pressure and expand the capacity of the road network, constructing flyovers has become an effective way in most cities in China. During the period of the flyover construction, work zones occupy road space, impact traffic flow characteristics and driver behaviour; therefore, this causes a significant reduction of the capacity. Researching of the traffic flow characteristics during the period of flyover construction can improve traffic organization and traffic safety around work zones. This study analyses the traffic flow characteristics around the flyover work zone based on the site data collected in Hohhot City, China. This study shows that the traditional Logistic model for the equilibrium speed-density relationship is not applied to the traffic flow around the flyover work zone. Based on an in-depth analysis of the traffic flow characteristics and specific driver behaviours, this paper proposes an improved Logistic model to depict the equilibrium speed-density relationship around the flyover work zone. To analyse the mathematical characteristics of the speed-density relationship, this paper proposes a method to insert virtual data points into the initial data, which can make the fit curve be continuous.