Traffic Signal Consensus Control

2019PDFTech ReportNITC-RR-1165Mathematical modelsSignalizationTraffic congestionTraffic queuingTraffic simulationUrban areasTraffic signal controlnetwork controlconsensusUnited StatesNational Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC)Lafferriere, GerardoNational Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC)US Transportation CollectionWe introduce a model for traffic signal management based on network consensus control principles. The underlying principle in a consensus approach is that traffic signal cycles are adjusted in a distributed way so as to achieve desirable ratios of queue lengths throughout the street network. This approach tends to reduce traffic congestion due to queue saturation at any particular city block and it appears less susceptible to congestion due to unexpected traffic loads on the street grid. We developed simulation tools based on the MATLAB computing environment to analyze the use of the mathematical consensus approach to manage the signal control on an urban street network.80