Modeling proactive avoidance behaviors in pedestrian flows considering congestion anticipation

Abstract

This paper investigates proactive avoidance behaviors in pedestrian flows by means of real-world experiments and a potential field model. Typical movement patterns of pedestrians related to the proactive avoidance behaviors are provided. Based on the observed behaviors, a potential field model is proposed to combine tactical-level and operational-level modeling frameworks. This model allows pedestrians to select and move toward temporary destinations instead of moving directly to their final destinations. Pedestrian movements are guided by the potential values associated with different positions in the focused space. Three types of sub-potentials are involved to reflect the effects of route attributes, spatiotemporal congestion anticipation, and potential conflicts on pedestrian movements. Numerical experiments demonstrate that the proposed model can effectively reproduce pedestrians’ proactive avoidance behaviors. The model is validated by comparing the simulation results with existing experimental data and our own experimental data. This investigation provides an alternative explanation for pedestrian movement mechanisms.