The Potential for Traffic Emission Reduction on Freeways with Dynamic Line Control System analyzed with PTV Vissim

Abstract

The objective of this research is to analyze by means of microscopic traffic flow simulation whether the integration of traffic emissions in the control criteria of a dynamic line control system can lead to a reduction in emissions.A traffic flow model of a German freeway, equipped with a dynamic line control system, is built and calibrated in PTV Vissim. The current control logic is implemented in Python and integrated into Vissim through the COM interface. The acceptance of the road users towards the displayed speed limits is investigated using measured traffic data from the examined section and is included in the model. Traffic emissions are determined during the simulation, and the control logic is adapted. We performed the emission assessment using the Handbook Emission Factors for Road Transport (HBEFA) for air emissions (CO2, NOx, and PM) and the German guidelines for noise protection on roads (RLS-90) for noise emissions.To evaluate the control logic’s influence on resulting traffic emissions, the existing control logic, as it operates currently, is compared to altered control logics with additional consideration of emissions. An analysis of the emissions shows that the integration of pollution-based control criteria has a positive effect. All air and noise emissions can be slightly reduced by adjusting the control logic, with no significant changes in travel times.