New techniques are needed to deal with traffic jams that have formed in urban areas. As part of a study supported by EPSRC, the author has investigated dynamic strategies for controlling and dispersing jams that originate from temporary obstructions at particular locations in an idealised network. The strategies involve the application of bans to a number of critical junctions in the network. The bans come in two forms: turn or ahead. Turn bans are imposed on selected links to break gridlock cores at the nucleus of the jam. Ahead bans are implemented around the envelope of the traffic jam to reduce input into critical sections of the road. Under appropriate circumstances, certain combinations of these control measures have been found to have an appreciable impact on jam development and dispersion. In this paper, the effects of these core and gating strategies are investigated with the aid of a simulation model. A qualitative explanation of the performance and effect of the strategies under a variety of road network conditions is put forward. A quantitative estimate of the delays incurred over the period of control is also provided. The paper discusses the application of the ideas presented here to the two-way idealised network and concludes with a brief review of future research directions aimed at applying the experience gained to real networks.
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