Smoothing-MP: A novel max-pressure signal control considering signal coordination to smooth traffic in urban networks

Decentralized traffic signal control methods, such as max-pressure (MP) control or back-pressure (BP) control, have gained increasing attention in recent years. MP control, in particular, boasts mathematically-proven network throughput properties, enabling it to optimize network throughput and stabilize vehicle queue lengths whenever possible. Urban traffic volume is dynamic and features a non-uniform distribution throughout the network. Specifically, heavier traffic is often observed along arterial corridors or major origin–destination streams, such as those in central business districts (CBD), while less traffic is found on sub-arterial roads. To address these issues, many existing signal plans incorporate coordinated signal timing. Numerous previous studies have formulated signal coordination optimization as mixed-integer programming problems, with most belonging to centralized traffic signal controller categories. However, centralized approaches do not scale well to larger city networks. In this paper, we introduce a novel max-pressure signal control approach called Smoothing-MP, which considers signal coordination in urban networks to achieve both maximum vehicle stability and reduced travel time and delay along specific urban corridors, without altering the original stable region proposed by Varaiya (2013). This study represents a pioneering effort in modifying max-pressure control to incorporate signal coordination. Crucially, this policy retains the decentralized characteristic of the original max-pressure control, relying exclusively on local information sourced from upstream and downstream intersections. To evaluate the proposed Smoothing-MP control, we executed simulation studies on two different types of networks, the Downtown Austin Network and a Grid Network. The results unequivocally show that Smoothing-MP matches the maximum throughput of the original MP control. Moreover, it significantly reduces both travel time and delay along coordinated corridors. This dual accomplishment underscores the efficacy and potential advantages of the Smoothing-MP control approach.