Evaluation of the Michigan Urban Diamond Interchange with Respect to the Single-Point Urban Interchange

摘要

The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) is considering the much neededrehabilitation and upgrading of many interchanges found in urban environments. Thus, MDOT and Michigan State University (MSU) undertook a joint effort to evaluate the appropriateness of an urban interchange geometric configuration, the Single Point Urban Interchange (SPUI), as an alternative design to those presently used by MDOT. In particular, the Michigan Urban Diamond Interchange (MUDI) and the traditional diamond were investigated. A field review was conducted to collect information about the geometric design, signal operation, pedestrian control and pavement markings of SPUIs, as none currently exist in Michigan. The field review showed that the design and operation of SPUIs vary greatly from state to state. Thus, the SPUI and MUDI designs were computer modeled to facilitate a comparison of their respective operational characteristics.