Efficient real-time allocation of patrol cars in traffic management

Efficient allocation and dispatch of emergency vehicles is a common problem encountered by law enforcement and public safety agencies. An example of such agencies is the traffic patrol department, which has the responsibility of regulating and managing the movement of road traffic as well as responding to road incidents in a timely manner. A brief analysis of the patrol car allocation problem is presented. The problem involves determining the minimum number of patrol cars required to maintain a required service standard and the optimum location of patrol cars to achieve the best response times. An algorithm for determining the optimal number of patrol cars and the prepositioning of the vehicles is presented. The algorithm combines an analytical model with a Monte Carlo simulation, keeping execution times manageable. Even when applied to large geographic areas, the computational requirements of the algorithm remain modest