Development of a New Platoon Dispersion Model considering Turning Vehicles in Urban Road Environment

By considering turning vehicles of a platoon that travels on arterial link, a new procedure for calibrating dispersion parameter α of Robertson's model is proposed. Upstream edge of channelized section is served as the boundary and the link between two adjacent intersections is divided into two sections, which are road section and channelized section. Typical investigation site is selected in Changchun city and data are collected to study the relationship between α and internal frictions, such as traffic volume and turning proportion. Double Gaussian function and logistic function are used to fit the curves among optimum values of α and internal frictions in the two sections, respectively, which allow the determination of α that varies as the volumes and turning proportions change. The study results are of great importance for arterial progression because Robertson's model can depict platoon movements more accurately using the calibrated values of α.