Research on Traffic Capacity of Eight-Lane Freeways under Lane Management

With the surge of traffic volume, more four-lane freeways have been converted into eight-lane freeways, which leads to a rise in vehicle driving freedom and complexity. Correspondingly, lane management strategy is employed to regulate traffic operation and thus modify road capacity. This paper investigates basic sections of an eight-lane freeway as the research object. Based on the operation data of the Shanghai-Nanjing freeway, a vehicle classification method taking rear-end spacing as the index was promoted, classifying vehicles into four kinds. Then by adopting empirical analysis and cellular automaton simulation model improved on vehicle division and lane changing rules, the eight-lane freeway capacity was studied and verified. Moreover, the impact of truck ratios and lane management strategies on capacity was specified. By conducting this research, it will be beneficial to control eight-lane freeway flow reasonably as well as improve operational efficiency and safety.