Recent developments in sociotechnical factors that influence the interaction of air travel demand... more Recent developments in sociotechnical factors that influence the interaction of air travel demand and telecommunication systems, including technical innovations, have renewed interest in this subject. Airlines have expressed concern that they will lose a significant portion of their future business travel growth to the electronic media. To improve the scientific basis for developing estimates of replaced travel and associated impacts such as infrastructure utilization, a research project was carried out on this topic. In this paper are presented highlights of findings on the determinants of travel substitution and stimulation phenomena. A systematic investigation of factors and their interrelationships is reported. The factors treated include socioeconomic variables, communication needs, technical capability and cost of telecommunications and transportation, institutional and policy variables, human factors, and transportation-telecommunications trade-offs in representative spatial ...
Urban Transport XII: Urban Transport and the Environment in the 21st Century, 2006
Given the complexity and novel aspects of ITS-based measures for transportation network improveme... more Given the complexity and novel aspects of ITS-based measures for transportation network improvements, traditional macroscopic travel analysis models are of limited utility for assessing project benefits and costs. To fully capture the operational-level impacts of such technologies, a microsimulation approach is required. This paper describes the use of microsimulation techniques for studying the relative effectiveness of alternatives that include ITS applications. To illustrate the methodology, a case study involving the transportation network in Ottawa, Canada is presented. The paper is divided into five parts. First, mobility issues and the need for innovative solutions are introduced. Second, the transportation network in Ottawa is described and potential initiatives for addressing traffic congestion are noted, including demand reduction, freeway capacity expansion, and selected ITS measures. Third, the microsimulation-based modelling methodology is defined which was used to test improvement scenarios. Results from the various micro-simulation runs are then presented in terms of selected measures-of-effectiveness. Finally, conclusions drawn from the case study are presented.
The ability of the transportation system to continue to serve traffic under disruptive conditions... more The ability of the transportation system to continue to serve traffic under disruptive conditions is a resilience characteristic of infrastructure and traffic management. In the context of this research, resilience is defined as the ability to resist the loss of traffic-serving capability by using traffic (including geometric) and control system design advances (i.e. the inherent resilience) and by activating capacity-enhancing measures (i.e. the dynamic resilience). Vulnerabilities in road traffic networks cause the loss of capability to serve demand overloads. On the other hand, intelligent technology and associated methodology can potentially prevent or reduce this loss of capability. An outstanding research question is the role of automation in driving for enhancing the resilience of urban road traffic network. This paper reports research in-progress on improving resilience of adaptive capacity in traffic networks with intelligent systems and advanced methods. An introduction is...
Abstract: The need for research on level of service criteria and standards for the design and eva... more Abstract: The need for research on level of service criteria and standards for the design and evaluation of existing or proposed new landside facilities arises from the requirement that they reflect technical developments, enhanced knowledge of user preference and ...
Journal on Systemics, Cybernetics and Informatics, 2013
Intelligent transportation systems (ITS) are gaining acceptance around the world and the connecte... more Intelligent transportation systems (ITS) are gaining acceptance around the world and the connected vehicle component of ITS is recognized as a high priority research and development area in many technologically advanced countries. Connected vehicles are expected to have the capability of safe, efficient and eco-driving operations whether these are under human control or in the adaptive machine control mode of operations. The race is on to design the capability to operate in connected traffic environment. The operational requirements can be met with cognitive vehicle design features made possible by advances in artificial intelligence-supported methodology, improved understanding of human factors, and advances in communication technology. This paper describes cognitive features and their information system requirements. The architecture of an information system is presented that supports the features of the cognitive connected vehicle. For better focus, information processing capabil...
Transportation policy, planning, and management studies require reliable estimates of travel acti... more Transportation policy, planning, and management studies require reliable estimates of travel activity. In estimating intra-zonal travel in particular, it is common practice to accept coarse estimates due to the macroscopic nature of the conventional planning methodology which does not support detailed network analysis. This paper discusses the role of geographic information systems (GIS) in estimating urban travel factors. A case study is presented for Canada’s National Capital Region which illustrates the use of EMME/2 and GIS applications to improve data reliability. The results show that the coarse factor approach commonly used to estimate intra-zonal travel consistently tends to underestimate trip lengths compared to the full GIS approach.
Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, 2017
According to the vision of technology promotors, in a fully autonomous vehicle design a driver ne... more According to the vision of technology promotors, in a fully autonomous vehicle design a driver need not be in the loop even in a complex driving environment. Recognizing the technological, legal, social and economic constraints, this vision may not become reality for many years into the future. However, a “cognitive vehicle” provides a realistic step towards full automation. A cognitive vehicle is an intelligent vehicle designed to have a seamless non-distracting interface with the driver and for reasons of liability and cost, the driver remains “in the loop”. As a part of this vehicle’s design, an adaptive driver assistance system, among many other features, can have the longitudinal and transverse control capability. The driver has the option to turn on the active safety feature and can override the automation feature to make difficult decisions. On the other hand, active feature takes over driving if the driver is highly distracted or disabled.
Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, 2018
Public policy makers have high expectations from automation in driving. The autonomous vehicle is... more Public policy makers have high expectations from automation in driving. The autonomous vehicle is expected to perform as a minimum the driving tasks of an alert non-aggressive driver. To go beyond these requirements, automation functions are to be designed to extend human driver capability in the form of processing large volume of data on driving environment in support of decision-making. This paper defines the role of Bayesian artificial intelligence (AI) in the development of car-following and lane change models for assisted and autonomous driving. Variables and model forms are covered. Driving simulator data in association with models enable illustrations on how new Bayesian AI-based models in driving assistance and automation system design can overcome safety problems caused by deficient perception-reaction performance. Finally, conclusions are presented on the roles of the Bayesian AI in adding cognitive capability to car-following and lane change models to be used for automation in driving.
This paper advances a Bayesian model that can explain how a potential commuter decides whether to... more This paper advances a Bayesian model that can explain how a potential commuter decides whether to telecommute or not and identifies the optimal option under defined personal, work, and traffic conditions. The variables that influenced the development of the model include urban structure, employer policy regarding telecommuting, personal utility structure of potential telecommuter, and traffic conditions that are encountered in regular commuting. For the sake of realism, the model is applied to the National Capital Area (Canada), where attitude survey, land use, and travel data are available. The results show that the Bayesian model has the potential to account for diverse socioeconomic environments under which telecommuting decisions are made. The model can be used by a potential telecommuter to identify the most favorable telecommuting option. Private and public sector organizations can apply the model to infer the acceptance of telecommuting by employees whose jobs are potentially...
Ite Journal-institute of Transportation Engineers, 2011
Transportation planners and engineers are facing a challenge in safely accommodating bicycles wit... more Transportation planners and engineers are facing a challenge in safely accommodating bicycles within the right of way of roads in both urban and rural areas. Risk-based methods can help characterize and evaluate suitable designs for these shared facilities. This paper describes methodologies for developing risk-based design guidelines and strategies. There are two common categories of risks. First, a bicyclist and a motor vehicle in a shared lane may end up in the same space, which is a precursor to collision. Second, the aerodynamic effects of large motor vehicles passing a cyclist can lead to an accident. A previously developed model is applied for quantifying the risk of common occupancy of a defined length of a travel lane. This information is necessary to estimate collisions. A Monte Carlo simulation model is applied that can treat stochastic variables of aerodynamic lateral force and the tolerance limit. These methodologies are applied to examples to demonstrate how they can b...
This paper reports an investigation of cost and revenue for high speed rail vs. maglev systems se... more This paper reports an investigation of cost and revenue for high speed rail vs. maglev systems serving selected links in the Quebec City-Windsor Corridor (Canada). Information on the Corridor socio-economic and transportation characteristics is provided. The concept of costing and the methodology for estimating cost and revenue are described. For the high speed rail and maglev options, cost and revenue are compared.
At automation level 5 as defined by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), a driver will not ... more At automation level 5 as defined by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), a driver will not be in the loop even in a complex driving environment featuring among other challenges, the presence of vehicles with automation levels ranging from 1 (no automation) to 5 (fully automated). This paper defines the safety and ride quality requirements that a fully automated vehicle should meet when operating in a mixed traffic environment featuring vehicles of various automation levels and proposes a Bayesian AI-based driver algorithm as a solution. Design advances that can potentially overcome the safety and ride quality issues are described. Microscopic level data sourced from driving simulator studies are used in applications. Finally, conclusions are presented on the abilities of the Bayesian AI-based driver to meet safety and ride quality criteria while operating in driving environment characterized by uncertainties. The Bayesian AI-based driver is likely to enhance consumer and safet...
This paper examines the issue of travel versus telecommunication. The author reviews current know... more This paper examines the issue of travel versus telecommunication. The author reviews current knowledge, and suggests that substitution of telecommuting will become feasible due to technological and economic developments in the computer industry. He takes readers back to a question that faced travelers in Great Britain during World War II during a period of energy shortages: Is your journey really necessary. He suggests that the impacts of potential substitution of business travel in the inter-urban context would outweigh any stimulation of other travel purposes such as recreational travel. Finally, he lists nine critical factors, from type of work and meeting tasks of user groups to users predisposition to new equipment, that will dictate the publics acceptance of new telecommunication services.
Avoiding rear, sideswipe and other collisions is a requirement of the driver assistant part of th... more Avoiding rear, sideswipe and other collisions is a requirement of the driver assistant part of the cognitive vehicle design. This can be met by the collision warning system that integrates intelligent technology and human factors. To be effective, such a system should be able to analyze driving states including driver distraction and driver intent, assess the likelihood of collisions by working with surrogate safety measures, and issue warnings to the driver. This paper presents a longitudinal and sideswipe collision warning model that allows the inclusion of key surrogate safety measures such as distance between vehicles in longitudinal vehicle following mode or envelopes of vehicles in the transverse direction during merge or lane change movements, in association with values of driver distraction and driver intent variables obtained on-line or from off-line devices. The formulation is also applicable to time-to-crash surrogate safety measure. A pattern recognition method is used f...
Intelligent transportation systems (ITS)-based traffic management measures can be used in highway... more Intelligent transportation systems (ITS)-based traffic management measures can be used in highway work zones for improving mobility and to reduce rear-end collisions and other accidents. This paper reports research with the following objectives to: (1) define safe and efficient means for managing traffic in highway work zones; and (2) investigate the use of ITS technologies for managing delay, defining variable speed limits, guiding the lane merging process, and automated enforcement. The study was carried out in an off-line mode using modeling and simulation approach. This research shows that the microsimulation technique is useful for testing ITS-based traffic management measures.
Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, 2017
Researchers and automotive industry experts are in favour of accelerating the development of “cog... more Researchers and automotive industry experts are in favour of accelerating the development of “cognitive vehicle” features, which will integrate intelligent technology and human factors for providing non-distracting interface for safety, efficiency and environmental sustainability in driving. In addition, infotainment capability is a desirable feature of the vehicle of the future, provided that it does not add to driver distraction. Further, these features are expected to be a stepping-stone to fully autonomous driving. This paper describes advances in driver-vehicle interface and presents highlights of research in design. Specifically, the design features of the cognitive vehicle are presented and measures needed to address major issues are noted. The application of Bayesian Artificial Intelligence is described in the design of driving assistance system, and design considerations are advanced in order to overcome issues in in-vehicle telematics systems. Finally, conclusions are advanced based on coverage of research material in the paper.
This paper evaluates the effect of inclement weather conditions on the travel demand for three cl... more This paper evaluates the effect of inclement weather conditions on the travel demand for three classes of vehicles for a primary highway in the province of Alberta, Canada. The demand variables are passenger cars, trucks, and total traffic. It is well known from previous studies that adverse weather conditions such as low temperatures and heavy snowfall cause variation in traffic flow patterns. A winter weather model, based on the dummy variable regression model, was developed to quantify the variations in traffic volume due to snowfall and temperature changes. To establish the relationships, vehicular data was collected from six weigh-in-motion (WIM) sites, and the weather data associated with the WIM sites was collected from nearby weather stations. The study revealed that the variation in truck traffic, due to inclement weather conditions, was insignificant compared to variation in passenger car traffic. This study also investigated the temporal transferability of the developed w...
Recent developments in sociotechnical factors that influence the interaction of air travel demand... more Recent developments in sociotechnical factors that influence the interaction of air travel demand and telecommunication systems, including technical innovations, have renewed interest in this subject. Airlines have expressed concern that they will lose a significant portion of their future business travel growth to the electronic media. To improve the scientific basis for developing estimates of replaced travel and associated impacts such as infrastructure utilization, a research project was carried out on this topic. In this paper are presented highlights of findings on the determinants of travel substitution and stimulation phenomena. A systematic investigation of factors and their interrelationships is reported. The factors treated include socioeconomic variables, communication needs, technical capability and cost of telecommunications and transportation, institutional and policy variables, human factors, and transportation-telecommunications trade-offs in representative spatial ...
Urban Transport XII: Urban Transport and the Environment in the 21st Century, 2006
Given the complexity and novel aspects of ITS-based measures for transportation network improveme... more Given the complexity and novel aspects of ITS-based measures for transportation network improvements, traditional macroscopic travel analysis models are of limited utility for assessing project benefits and costs. To fully capture the operational-level impacts of such technologies, a microsimulation approach is required. This paper describes the use of microsimulation techniques for studying the relative effectiveness of alternatives that include ITS applications. To illustrate the methodology, a case study involving the transportation network in Ottawa, Canada is presented. The paper is divided into five parts. First, mobility issues and the need for innovative solutions are introduced. Second, the transportation network in Ottawa is described and potential initiatives for addressing traffic congestion are noted, including demand reduction, freeway capacity expansion, and selected ITS measures. Third, the microsimulation-based modelling methodology is defined which was used to test improvement scenarios. Results from the various micro-simulation runs are then presented in terms of selected measures-of-effectiveness. Finally, conclusions drawn from the case study are presented.
The ability of the transportation system to continue to serve traffic under disruptive conditions... more The ability of the transportation system to continue to serve traffic under disruptive conditions is a resilience characteristic of infrastructure and traffic management. In the context of this research, resilience is defined as the ability to resist the loss of traffic-serving capability by using traffic (including geometric) and control system design advances (i.e. the inherent resilience) and by activating capacity-enhancing measures (i.e. the dynamic resilience). Vulnerabilities in road traffic networks cause the loss of capability to serve demand overloads. On the other hand, intelligent technology and associated methodology can potentially prevent or reduce this loss of capability. An outstanding research question is the role of automation in driving for enhancing the resilience of urban road traffic network. This paper reports research in-progress on improving resilience of adaptive capacity in traffic networks with intelligent systems and advanced methods. An introduction is...
Abstract: The need for research on level of service criteria and standards for the design and eva... more Abstract: The need for research on level of service criteria and standards for the design and evaluation of existing or proposed new landside facilities arises from the requirement that they reflect technical developments, enhanced knowledge of user preference and ...
Journal on Systemics, Cybernetics and Informatics, 2013
Intelligent transportation systems (ITS) are gaining acceptance around the world and the connecte... more Intelligent transportation systems (ITS) are gaining acceptance around the world and the connected vehicle component of ITS is recognized as a high priority research and development area in many technologically advanced countries. Connected vehicles are expected to have the capability of safe, efficient and eco-driving operations whether these are under human control or in the adaptive machine control mode of operations. The race is on to design the capability to operate in connected traffic environment. The operational requirements can be met with cognitive vehicle design features made possible by advances in artificial intelligence-supported methodology, improved understanding of human factors, and advances in communication technology. This paper describes cognitive features and their information system requirements. The architecture of an information system is presented that supports the features of the cognitive connected vehicle. For better focus, information processing capabil...
Transportation policy, planning, and management studies require reliable estimates of travel acti... more Transportation policy, planning, and management studies require reliable estimates of travel activity. In estimating intra-zonal travel in particular, it is common practice to accept coarse estimates due to the macroscopic nature of the conventional planning methodology which does not support detailed network analysis. This paper discusses the role of geographic information systems (GIS) in estimating urban travel factors. A case study is presented for Canada’s National Capital Region which illustrates the use of EMME/2 and GIS applications to improve data reliability. The results show that the coarse factor approach commonly used to estimate intra-zonal travel consistently tends to underestimate trip lengths compared to the full GIS approach.
Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, 2017
According to the vision of technology promotors, in a fully autonomous vehicle design a driver ne... more According to the vision of technology promotors, in a fully autonomous vehicle design a driver need not be in the loop even in a complex driving environment. Recognizing the technological, legal, social and economic constraints, this vision may not become reality for many years into the future. However, a “cognitive vehicle” provides a realistic step towards full automation. A cognitive vehicle is an intelligent vehicle designed to have a seamless non-distracting interface with the driver and for reasons of liability and cost, the driver remains “in the loop”. As a part of this vehicle’s design, an adaptive driver assistance system, among many other features, can have the longitudinal and transverse control capability. The driver has the option to turn on the active safety feature and can override the automation feature to make difficult decisions. On the other hand, active feature takes over driving if the driver is highly distracted or disabled.
Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, 2018
Public policy makers have high expectations from automation in driving. The autonomous vehicle is... more Public policy makers have high expectations from automation in driving. The autonomous vehicle is expected to perform as a minimum the driving tasks of an alert non-aggressive driver. To go beyond these requirements, automation functions are to be designed to extend human driver capability in the form of processing large volume of data on driving environment in support of decision-making. This paper defines the role of Bayesian artificial intelligence (AI) in the development of car-following and lane change models for assisted and autonomous driving. Variables and model forms are covered. Driving simulator data in association with models enable illustrations on how new Bayesian AI-based models in driving assistance and automation system design can overcome safety problems caused by deficient perception-reaction performance. Finally, conclusions are presented on the roles of the Bayesian AI in adding cognitive capability to car-following and lane change models to be used for automation in driving.
This paper advances a Bayesian model that can explain how a potential commuter decides whether to... more This paper advances a Bayesian model that can explain how a potential commuter decides whether to telecommute or not and identifies the optimal option under defined personal, work, and traffic conditions. The variables that influenced the development of the model include urban structure, employer policy regarding telecommuting, personal utility structure of potential telecommuter, and traffic conditions that are encountered in regular commuting. For the sake of realism, the model is applied to the National Capital Area (Canada), where attitude survey, land use, and travel data are available. The results show that the Bayesian model has the potential to account for diverse socioeconomic environments under which telecommuting decisions are made. The model can be used by a potential telecommuter to identify the most favorable telecommuting option. Private and public sector organizations can apply the model to infer the acceptance of telecommuting by employees whose jobs are potentially...
Ite Journal-institute of Transportation Engineers, 2011
Transportation planners and engineers are facing a challenge in safely accommodating bicycles wit... more Transportation planners and engineers are facing a challenge in safely accommodating bicycles within the right of way of roads in both urban and rural areas. Risk-based methods can help characterize and evaluate suitable designs for these shared facilities. This paper describes methodologies for developing risk-based design guidelines and strategies. There are two common categories of risks. First, a bicyclist and a motor vehicle in a shared lane may end up in the same space, which is a precursor to collision. Second, the aerodynamic effects of large motor vehicles passing a cyclist can lead to an accident. A previously developed model is applied for quantifying the risk of common occupancy of a defined length of a travel lane. This information is necessary to estimate collisions. A Monte Carlo simulation model is applied that can treat stochastic variables of aerodynamic lateral force and the tolerance limit. These methodologies are applied to examples to demonstrate how they can b...
This paper reports an investigation of cost and revenue for high speed rail vs. maglev systems se... more This paper reports an investigation of cost and revenue for high speed rail vs. maglev systems serving selected links in the Quebec City-Windsor Corridor (Canada). Information on the Corridor socio-economic and transportation characteristics is provided. The concept of costing and the methodology for estimating cost and revenue are described. For the high speed rail and maglev options, cost and revenue are compared.
At automation level 5 as defined by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), a driver will not ... more At automation level 5 as defined by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), a driver will not be in the loop even in a complex driving environment featuring among other challenges, the presence of vehicles with automation levels ranging from 1 (no automation) to 5 (fully automated). This paper defines the safety and ride quality requirements that a fully automated vehicle should meet when operating in a mixed traffic environment featuring vehicles of various automation levels and proposes a Bayesian AI-based driver algorithm as a solution. Design advances that can potentially overcome the safety and ride quality issues are described. Microscopic level data sourced from driving simulator studies are used in applications. Finally, conclusions are presented on the abilities of the Bayesian AI-based driver to meet safety and ride quality criteria while operating in driving environment characterized by uncertainties. The Bayesian AI-based driver is likely to enhance consumer and safet...
This paper examines the issue of travel versus telecommunication. The author reviews current know... more This paper examines the issue of travel versus telecommunication. The author reviews current knowledge, and suggests that substitution of telecommuting will become feasible due to technological and economic developments in the computer industry. He takes readers back to a question that faced travelers in Great Britain during World War II during a period of energy shortages: Is your journey really necessary. He suggests that the impacts of potential substitution of business travel in the inter-urban context would outweigh any stimulation of other travel purposes such as recreational travel. Finally, he lists nine critical factors, from type of work and meeting tasks of user groups to users predisposition to new equipment, that will dictate the publics acceptance of new telecommunication services.
Avoiding rear, sideswipe and other collisions is a requirement of the driver assistant part of th... more Avoiding rear, sideswipe and other collisions is a requirement of the driver assistant part of the cognitive vehicle design. This can be met by the collision warning system that integrates intelligent technology and human factors. To be effective, such a system should be able to analyze driving states including driver distraction and driver intent, assess the likelihood of collisions by working with surrogate safety measures, and issue warnings to the driver. This paper presents a longitudinal and sideswipe collision warning model that allows the inclusion of key surrogate safety measures such as distance between vehicles in longitudinal vehicle following mode or envelopes of vehicles in the transverse direction during merge or lane change movements, in association with values of driver distraction and driver intent variables obtained on-line or from off-line devices. The formulation is also applicable to time-to-crash surrogate safety measure. A pattern recognition method is used f...
Intelligent transportation systems (ITS)-based traffic management measures can be used in highway... more Intelligent transportation systems (ITS)-based traffic management measures can be used in highway work zones for improving mobility and to reduce rear-end collisions and other accidents. This paper reports research with the following objectives to: (1) define safe and efficient means for managing traffic in highway work zones; and (2) investigate the use of ITS technologies for managing delay, defining variable speed limits, guiding the lane merging process, and automated enforcement. The study was carried out in an off-line mode using modeling and simulation approach. This research shows that the microsimulation technique is useful for testing ITS-based traffic management measures.
Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, 2017
Researchers and automotive industry experts are in favour of accelerating the development of “cog... more Researchers and automotive industry experts are in favour of accelerating the development of “cognitive vehicle” features, which will integrate intelligent technology and human factors for providing non-distracting interface for safety, efficiency and environmental sustainability in driving. In addition, infotainment capability is a desirable feature of the vehicle of the future, provided that it does not add to driver distraction. Further, these features are expected to be a stepping-stone to fully autonomous driving. This paper describes advances in driver-vehicle interface and presents highlights of research in design. Specifically, the design features of the cognitive vehicle are presented and measures needed to address major issues are noted. The application of Bayesian Artificial Intelligence is described in the design of driving assistance system, and design considerations are advanced in order to overcome issues in in-vehicle telematics systems. Finally, conclusions are advanced based on coverage of research material in the paper.
This paper evaluates the effect of inclement weather conditions on the travel demand for three cl... more This paper evaluates the effect of inclement weather conditions on the travel demand for three classes of vehicles for a primary highway in the province of Alberta, Canada. The demand variables are passenger cars, trucks, and total traffic. It is well known from previous studies that adverse weather conditions such as low temperatures and heavy snowfall cause variation in traffic flow patterns. A winter weather model, based on the dummy variable regression model, was developed to quantify the variations in traffic volume due to snowfall and temperature changes. To establish the relationships, vehicular data was collected from six weigh-in-motion (WIM) sites, and the weather data associated with the WIM sites was collected from nearby weather stations. The study revealed that the variation in truck traffic, due to inclement weather conditions, was insignificant compared to variation in passenger car traffic. This study also investigated the temporal transferability of the developed w...
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