Decision Model for Justifying the Benefits of Detour Operation under Non-Recurrent Congestion

Abstract

Non-recurrent traffic congestion due to incidents, highway construction zones, and special events has contributed up to 60% of the total freeway corridor delay in the United States. Under most scenarios, if proper diversion plans can be implemented in time, motorists can circumvent the congested segments and best use the available corridor capacity. Nevertheless, before the implementation of any detour strategy, traffic managers must ensure the resulting benefits, because implementing those advanced control strategies usually demand substantial amount of resources and manpower. This study, proposed in response to such needs, presents a detour decision methodology for urban freeway non-recurrent congestion management, based on the results of extensive simulation experiments and operational guidelines from highway agencies. The proposed model offers a reliable and effective tool for responsible traffic management personnel to make consistent detour decisions in response to a detected incident. Numerical results clearly indicate that a timely and well-justified detour operation can yield substantial benefits to both the driving population and the entire community.