UTRC Press Release
Friday, February 7, 2014
Contact: Nadia Aslam
Assistant Director for Technology Transfer
University Transportation Research Center - Region 2
Tel: 212-650-8051
Email: nadia@utrc2.org
The University Transportation Research Center (UTRC) Publishes the Final Report: "Development of Traffic Performance Metrics Using Real-time Traffic Data"
UTRC has released a final report for the research titled: "Development of Traffic Performance Metrics Using Real-time Traffic Data", funded by the Research and Innovative Technology Administration/USDOT (RITA). The principal investigators were Dr. John C. Falcocchio, a professor of Transportation Planning and Engineering at the Polytechnic Institute of NYU and Dr. Elena Prassas, an associate professor at the Polytechnic Institute of NYU.
In a congested urban street network the average traffic speed is an inadequate metric for measuring speed changes that drivers can perceive from changes in traffic control strategies. A driver–oriented metric is needed. Stop frequency distributions were developed for avenue segments in Manhattan, NYC, from known vehicle travel times for the am, midday, and pm peak hours. The stop frequency metrics were developed from archived real-time data for twenty avenue segments in Midtown Manhattan. Additional data sources included ETC (EZ-Pass) readers, Google Earth, and records of Traffic Signal Strategies.
Using the stop frequency metric it is possible to evaluate the benefits of adaptive traffic control systems (ATCS) over pre-ATCS deployment, by comparing the number of vehicles stopping more than an acceptable number of stops.
The full report is available for a free download at the UTRC website: http://www.utrc2.org/publications/final-traffic-performance-metrics
About the University Transportation Research Center (UTRC)
The University Transportation Research Center (UTRC) is a USDOT Regional Transportation Center addressing surface transportation operations, management, design economics and planning. The Region 2 University Transportation Research Center is one of ten original National Centers, established in 1987, in recognition that transportation plays a key role in the nation’s economy and in the quality of people’s lives. Located at the City University of New York, the Center is a Consortium of 17 major Academic Institutions in New York, New Jersey, and Puerto Rico. Through the Grant supporting the Center, the mission incorporates research, education and the transfer of technology in the field of transportation. Academically based, the work of Faculty and Students – graduate and undergraduate provide a critical link in resolving our national and regional transportation problems while training the future and current professionals who address our transportation system and their customers on a daily basis. For more information, visit www.utrc2.org.