A Multiclass Dynamic Traffic Assignment Model for Special Events Management Authors

The City of Vancouver is committed to improve public transit and reduce congestion to accommodate people traveling to, from, and within the city in various transportation modes. The Stadium District of the city also hosts a vast amount of special events, including the National Hockey League, the Canadian Football League, and the oncoming 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympics Games. Special events present unique challenges to downtown transportation management. During special events, the transportation management has to address a surge in vehicle and pedestrian demand and account for potential evacuation. To aid decision making in planning for these events, the City of Vancouver looks for new tools. For special events analysis, it is important account for: 1) the dynamic nature of the travel demand flow; 2) and the capacity changes at the supply side due to the interaction between pedestrians and vehicles; and 3) and the impacts of short term route closures. To meet these requirements, the Downtown Vancouver Emergency and Transportation Management System (DVTEMS) was developed by the City of Vancouver. DVTEMS is a multi-modal dynamic traffic assignment model with a specific focus on pedestrian behavior and route choice