4.

Traffic Signal Control

 Fundamental Theory on Signal Control
 signal phase
 signal parameters
 saturation flow rate, flow ratio, delay
 Signal Control Types
 typical control types
 Signal Coordination
 offset coordination and delay

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Fundamental Theory on Signal Control
 Signal phase (現示)
 The part of signal cycle allocated to any
combination of movements
movements
receiving the right-of-
way simultaneously
2-phase Control
1 2

3-phase Control
1 2 3

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Typical phase configurations
 Heavy right turn traffic and opposed through
traffic
1 2 3

 Heavy left turn traffic and pedestrians

1 2 3

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Signal parameters
 Cycle length (サイクル長): C [sec]
Time duration of one cycle of signal phases
 Split (スプリット): g [%] (=G/C, G:effective green
time [sec])
 Time ratio of one phase out of the cycle time
 Offset (オフセット): x (=X/C) [%] or X [sec]
 Time difference of green start between two adjacent
intersections

R G
C

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Saturation flow rate (飽和交通流率)
 Maximum
maximum traffic flow rate Cycle
passing at a stop line cum #
Yellow
Green + All Red
during green time under
enough arriving
(=saturated)
saturated
demand
situation
 Unit: [veh/effective green saturation flow rate
hr/lane]
time
 C=G+Y+AR starting
loss effective clearance
loss
green
=G(effective green)
G (effective green)

+L(lost time)
L (lost time)

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Saturation(飽和) and Undersaturation(非飽和)
 arrival rate (=demand):
 saturation flow rate:

(for all i)

“saturated” “undersaturated”
cum # cum #

lamda
lamda

phi
phi

G time G time

C C
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Flow ratio (需要率)
saturation flow rate
 ratio of arrival
arrival rate (=demand) and saturation

flow rate on approach i in phase j

lane i phase j

 flow ratio of phase j: lane 3

lane 1
phase 1 phase 2

lane 4
lane 2
 flow ratio of an intersection:

 For undersaturated condition,

i  C  i  G j (for all i, j)     j g j  1
L
 0.8 ~ 0.9
C
i G j L
ij    g j (for all j) C   Cmin “minimum cycle length”
i C 1 
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Delay (遅れ)
 Difference of travel
travel timetime between with and

w/o signalized intersection

cum #
  ( R  t0 )    t0
λ
R  R
t0  
   1 
total delay (per cycle) D: μ
1 R R 2
D R 
2 1   2(1   )
t0
R G time
average delay (per vehicle) d: C
D R2 C  (1  s ) 2
d   (s  G / C )
  C 2C  (1   ) 2  (1   )
(delay under uniform arrival condition)
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Features
 large cycle (C)  large delay (D)
 small cycle (C)  large % of lost time (L)
 many phases  large % of lost time (L)
cum # cum #

λ
λ

μ
delay delay μ

G time G time
C C

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Delay by stochastic arrival
 Webster’s delay formula
x2 C 13 2  5 ( G / C ) x  (  C ) /(   G )
dw d   0.65( 2 )  x
2 (1  x) 
delay by delay increment correction term
uniform arrival by random by empirical
(Poisson) arrival simulation

delay

 to minimize this delay,

1.5 L  5
C  Copt “optimum cycle length”
1 
(empirically drived
by simulation)
cycle
length

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Example
200/750 120/600

60/200

1. Which phase should have the largest split?

And How much?
2. How much percentage is needed for
effective green (G)?
3. Assuming L(lost time)=5[sec] for each
phase, how long is the optimum cycle
length? And how long green time should be
given for each phase?
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Answer
1.

2.

3.

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Signal Control Types
 Spatial classification
 Isolated signal control (単独(地点)制御)
 Arterial coordination (路線系統制御)
 Network coordination (面制御)
 Control classification
 Pretime control (定時(定周期)制御)
 Single-program pretime control
 Multi-program pretime control
 Responsive control (交通感応制御)
 Program selection control
 Program formation control

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Multi-program pretime control
 widely used
 One of the pre-determined programs (phase
plan and parameters) is implemented
according to time & day of week.
Monday
Thursday
Friday

Typical
flow ratio weekday
of intersection pattern

Typical
weekend
pattern

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Responsive control
 Control parameters are selected / created
depending on the traffic situation detected by
roadside sensors.
 macroscopic / microscopic response
 example of microscopic
 right-turn vehicles
 bus
 train
 pedestrian

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Signal coordination
space one-way street space two-way street

time time

 one-way street:
optimum offset = travel time between intersections
 two-way street: optimum offset = ?
need to consider traffic in both direction
 Cycle time have to be the same among coordinated
intersections so that the coordination is kept.
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Offset and delay
 C=T (round trip travel time of  C=2T case
the link) case
space
space

time
time
Delay
Total Delay
Total

x [% of cycle] x [% of Cycle]
0 50 100
0 50 100

 50% offset (alternate  0% (simultaneous

offset) is the optimum offset) or 50%
 coordination effect -  coordination effect -
large small

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Cycle length and minimum delay
Simultaneous Alternate Simultaneous
delay with optimized Min. Delay
offset for the given
cycle time
Urban Area

large coordination effect

small coordination effect

T/2 T 2T Cycle

2/5T 2/3T

 If link distance is long or cycle length is short, C

become less than 2T and coordination effect can
be achieved.
 If traffic is heavy and a queue is formed at a
bottleneck intersection, the coordination effect
become small.
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