Steady-state traffic flow on a ring road with up- and down- slopes
Abstract
This paper studies steady-state traffic flow on a ring road with up- and down- slopes using a semi-discrete model. By exploiting the relations between the semi-discrete and the continuum models, a steady-state solution is uniquely determined for a given total number of vehicles on the ring road. The solution is exact and always stable with respect to the first-order continuum model, whereas it is a good approximation with respect to the semi-discrete model provided that the involved equilibrium constant states are linearly stable. In an otherwise case, the instability of one or more equilibria could trigger stop-and-go waves propagating in certain road sections or throughout the ring road. The indicated results are reasonable and thus physically significant for a better understanding of real traffic flow on an inhomogeneous road.
Cite
@article{arxiv.1305.2062,
title = {Steady-state traffic flow on a ring road with up- and down- slopes},
author = {Chun-Xiu Wu and Peng Zhang and S. C. Wong and Keechoo Choi},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1305.2062},
year = {2015}
}