TOWARD A GENERAL FRAMEWORK FOR DYNAMIC ROAD PRICING

This paper develops a general framework for analysing and calculating dynamic road toll. The optimal network flow is first determined by solving an optimal control problem with state-dependent responses such that the overall benefit of the network system is maximized. An optimal toll is then sought to decentralise this optimal flow. This control theoretic formulation can work with general travel time models and cost functions. Deterministic queue is predominantly used in dynamic network models. The analysis in this paper is more general and is applied to calculate the optimal flow and toll for Friesz’s whole link traffic model. Numerical examples are provided for illustration and discussion. Finally, some concluding remarks are given. 1