Research 

Work Zone Traffic Control and Operations 

 The “Joint Merge” is a new traffic control design that facilitates alternating merge patterns between two arriving traffic streams.  The key feature of the Joint Merge design is its two-sided taper in which both approach lanes are reduced simultaneously into a single lane, thereby, eliminating an assigned lane priority. This is thought to improve traffic operations by reducing queue lengths, improving driver satisfaction, increasing capacity and decreasing the need for excessive weaving. 

Automated Flagging Devices 

Automated flagging devices are of particular interest to workers who operate in work zones. Most consist of a stop/slow paddle, signs and lights mounted to a portable trailer. The AFDs can be remotely controlled and inform approaching drivers when it is safe to travel through a work area. One of the main benefits of the AFD is that it frees workers (that might otherwise be manually flagging vehicles) from hazardous areas of high traffic. Additionally, more workers are able to devote attention to construction related tasks and improve efficiency.

Personality Traits and Travel Behavior 

The future and quality of transportation infrastructures rely heavily on the predictability of travel. To date, it is not fully understood how travel decisions are affected by personality or if personality is a viable option for predicting immediate travel, but the ability to grasp and apply this concept could lead to reliable predictions of real-time travel. Imagine being able to use a low-cost personality inventory to predict how the traveling public responds to an unexpected event such as a car crash or snowstorm. Now imagine using that information to estimate when and where congestion is likely to occur. Research on these possibilities is currently underway.

Pedestrian Travel / Pedestrian Evacuation 

Today’s environmental and economic climate has shifted some attention towards enhancing other modes of travel. While walking is a mode of travel used by millions daily, the facilities that promote walking, such as crosswalks, often involve sharing space with conflicting modes of traffic. The conflicts are heightened during high traffic periods. In attempt to address and better understand this concern, efforts have been made towards incorporating pedestrian travel patterns in intermodal travel models. However, one area (increasing in importance) that is still lacking in accuracy is modeling pedestrian evacuations.  This is mainly due to the inability to capture a large scale real-world evacuation. Most evacuations occur abruptly, which makes obtaining quantitative data difficult. Various modeling methods are currently being applied to offset this shortcoming. Many involve utilizing mathematical functions to represent discrete choice decisions in simulation packages. A better understanding of pedestrian patterns during evacuations, particularly for high traffic buildings and land areas, is paramount for emergency planners. 

Innovative Roadway Alignments 

 Sometimes small cities outgrow the transportation facilities available to them. Traffic officials have tried to control for this by optimizing signal timing and increasing the number of lanes. However, these adjustments are not expected to fully address the growing problem and are sometimes limited by existing space. Although the main corridors, traveled by many during peak hour, were designed to serve as minor arterial roadways, many serve volumes suitable for major arterials. Thus, properly managing them is of high priority. Intersections are a key concern since they are areas of high conflicting movements where two or more roadways meet. In recent times, intersections, and the roadways leading to them, have been modified using innovative design techniques. Researchers and designers alike are continually developing and evaluating these innovative  designs.

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