Adaptive Pushbutton Control for Signalized Pedestrian Midblock Crossings
Publication: Journal of Transportation Engineering, Part A: Systems
Volume 148, Issue 4
Abstract
Pushbutton control is ideal for midblock crossings with low pedestrian and vehicle demand, but it causes significant interruptions to traffic flow with frequent pedestrian crossing requests. Therefore, we propose an adaptive midblock crossing control (AMCC) that minimizes the impact of the pushbutton on traffic flow while maintaining a reasonably short pedestrian wait time (PWT). We regard the midblock crossing and two adjacent intersections as an integrated system and propose two types of AMCCs—AMCC-band and AMCC-vehicle—based on different types of real-time information. AMCC-band seeks the best PWT at the midblock crossing to minimize the green band loss with downstream intersections using the signal control status of adjacent intersections. Alternatively, AMCC-vehicle leverages real-time vehicle location information [e.g., obtained from vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication, connected vehicles (CVs), or advanced sensors] to minimize the estimated number of affected vehicles. Our study tests AMCC in the software Simulation of Urban MObility (SUMO) with a two-intersection traffic network. Results show that using AMCC at a midblock crossing significantly reduces vehicle delay under a wide range of traffic conditions compared to using a fixed phase and timing (Fixed) control or a pedestrian light-controlled (Pelican) crossing. The average pedestrian delay of AMCC is slightly above Pelican but much lower than Fixed. In addition, the two types of AMCCs work equally well in reducing vehicle delay, but the AMCC-vehicle has a considerably lower pedestrian delay. The results demonstrate the advantages of AMCC in reducing vehicle and pedestrian delay and vehicle stops, improving traffic efficiency at the arterial. Furthermore, the sensitivity analysis shows that the AMCC approach is adaptive to a broad range of traffic demands. Our method extends the application scope of common pushbutton control methods. We conclude that AMCC contributes to a more traffic-efficient, more pedestrian-friendly, and safer transportation system.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Data Availability Statement
All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the published article. Detailed code is available at https://github.com/Lucky-Fan/AMCCs.
Acknowledgments
This research is supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada Industrial Research Chairs (IRC) grants.
References
Breiman, L. 2001. “Random forests.” Mach. Learn. 45 (1): 5–32. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1010933404324.
Brent, R. P. 2013. Algorithms for minimization without derivatives. Chelmsford, MA: Courier Corporation.
British Columbia Ministry of Transportation and Highways. 1994. “Pedestrian crossing control manual for British Columbia.” Accessed June 19, 2021. https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/home.
Campbell, B. J., C. V. Zegeer, H. H. Huang, and M. J. Cynecki. 2004. “A review of pedestrian safety research in the United States and abroad.” Accessed June 19, 2021. https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/research/safety/pedbike/03042.
Deng, T., Y. Ni, and K. Li. 2013. “Pedestrian crossings at mid-block locations: A comparative study of existing signal operations.” In Proc., Transportation Research Board 92nd Annual Meeting. Washington, DC: Transportation Research Board.
FHWA (Federal Highway Administration). 2009. “Manual on uniform traffic control devices (MUTCD)-2009 edition.” Accessed June 19, 2021. https://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/pdfs/2009/pdf_index.htm.
FHWA (Federal Highway Administration). 2014. “Pedestrian hybrid beacon guide—Recommendations and case study.” Accessed June 19, 2021. https://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/ped_bike/tools_solve/fhwasa14014/.
FHWA (Federal Highway Administration). 2018. “Average vehicle occupancy factors for computing travel time reliability measures and total peak hour excessive delay metrics.” Accessed June 19, 2021. https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/tpm/guidance/avo_factors.pdf.
Forest City. 1931. “Push button pedestrian signals.” Accessed June 19, 2021. https://www.roads.org.uk/sites/default/files/articles/pedestrian-crossings/pdf/forestcity.pdf.
Gan, V. 2015. “Ask Citylab: Do ‘walk’ buttons actually do anything?” Accessed June 19, 2021. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-09-02/do-pedestrian-push-to-walk-buttons-actually-work.
Gartner, N. H., S. F. Assman, F. Lasaga, and D. L. Hou. 1991. “A multi-band approach to arterial traffic signal optimization.” Transp. Res. Part B: Methodol. 25 (1): 55–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/0191-2615(91)90013-9.
Godavarthy, R. P. 2010. “Effectiveness of a pedestrian hybrid beacon at mid-block pedestrian crossings in decreasing unnecessary delay to drivers and a comparison to other systems.” Ph.D. thesis, Dept. of Civil Engineering, Kansas State Univ.
Hillier, J. A., and R. Rothery. 1967. “The synchronization of traffic signals for minimum delay.” Transp. Sci. 1 (2): 81–94. https://doi.org/10.1287/trsc.1.2.81.
Hunt, J., and G. Lyons. 1997. Enhanced operating strategies to improve pedestrian amenity and safety at midblock signaled pedestrian crossings. Paris: European Transport Forum.
Kim, N. S., S. S. Yoon, and D. Yook. 2017. “Performance comparison between pedestrian push-button and pre-timed pedestrian crossings at midblock: A Korean case study.” Transp. Plann. Technol. 40 (6): 706–721. https://doi.org/10.1080/03081060.2017.1325146.
Liang, X., S. I. Guler, and V. V. Gayah. 2020b. “Traffic signal control optimization in a connected vehicle environment considering pedestrians.” Transp. Res. Rec. 2674 (10): 499–511. https://doi.org/10.1177/0361198120936268.
Liang, X. J., S. I. Guler, and V. V. Gayah. 2020a. “An equitable traffic signal control scheme at isolated signalized intersections using connected vehicle technology.” Transp. Res. Part C: Emerging Technol. 110 (Jan): 81–97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trc.2019.11.005.
Little, J. D. 1966. “The synchronization of traffic signals by mixed-integer linear programming.” Oper. Res. 14 (4): 568–594. https://doi.org/10.1287/opre.14.4.568.
Little, J. D., M. D. Kelson, and N. H. Gartner. 1981. Maxband: A versatile program for setting signals on arteries and triangular networks. Cambridge, MA: Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Lopez, P. A., M. Behrisch, L. Bieker-Walz, J. Erdmann, Y.-P. Flötteröd, R. Hilbrich, L. Lücken, J. Rummel, P. Wagner, and E. Wießner. 2018. “Microscopic traffic simulation using SUMO.” In Proc., 21st Int. Conf. on Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITSC), 2575–2582. New York: IEEE.
Lu, G., and D. A. Noyce. 2009. “Pedestrian crosswalks at midblock locations: Fuzzy logic solution to existing signal operations.” Transp. Res. Rec. 2140 (1): 63–78. https://doi.org/10.3141/2140-07.
Ma, W., and X. Yang. 2009. “Signal coordination models for midblock pedestrian crossing and adjacent intersections.” In Vol. 2 of Proc., 2nd Int. Conf. on Intelligent Computation Technology and Automation, 193–196. New York: IEEE.
Ma, W., X. Yang, W. Pu, and Y. Liu. 2010. “Signal timing optimization models for two-stage midblock pedestrian crossing.” Transp. Res. Rec. 2198 (1): 133–144. https://doi.org/10.3141/2198-15.
Morgan, J. T., and J. D. Little. 1964. “Synchronizing traffic signals for maximal bandwidth.” Oper. Res. 12 (6): 896–912. https://doi.org/10.1287/opre.12.6.896.
Noyce, D. A., and B. L. Bentzen. 2005. “Determination of pedestrian push-button activation duration at typical signalized intersections.” Transp. Res. Rec. 1939 (1): 63–68. https://doi.org/10.1177/0361198105193900108.
Papola, N., and G. Fusco. 1998. “Maximal bandwidth problems: A new algorithm based on the properties of periodicity of the system.” Transp. Res. Part B: Methodol. 32 (4): 277–288. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-2615(97)00032-5.
Pedregosa, F., et al. 2011. “Scikit-learn: Machine learning in Python.” J. Mach. Learn. Res. 12: 2825–2830.
Ragusea, A. 2010. “Crosswalk buttons don’t do anything! Except when they do.” Accessed June 19, 2021. https://www.wbur.org/radioboston/2010/05/10/walk-buttons.
Roshandeh, A. M., H. S. Levinson, Z. Li, H. Patel, and B. Zhou. 2014. “New methodology for intersection signal timing optimization to simultaneously minimize vehicle and pedestrian delays.” J. Transp. Eng. 140 (5): 04014009. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)TE.1943-5436.0000658.
Schmöcker, J.-D., S. Ahuja, and M. G. Bell. 2008. “Multi-objective signal control of urban junctions—Framework and a London case study.” Transp. Res. Part C: Emerging Technol. 16 (4): 454–470. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trc.2007.09.004.
Stamatiadis, C., and N. H. Gartner. 1996. “Multiband-96: A program for variable-bandwidth progression optimization of multiarterial traffic networks.” Transp. Res. Rec. 1554 (1): 9–17. https://doi.org/10.1177/0361198196155400102.
Teketi, N., and S. S. Pulugurtha. 2020. Effect of pedestrian hybrid beacon signal on operational performance measures at the mid-block location and adjacent signalized intersection, 99–111. New York: Springer.
Turner, S., L. Sandt, J. Toole, R. Benz, and R. Patten. 2006. “Federal Highway Administration University course on bicycle and pedestrian transportation.” Accessed June 19, 2021. https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/research/safety/pedbike/05085.
Van Houten, R., R. Ellis, and J.-L. Kim. 2007. “Effects of various minimum green times on percentage of pedestrians waiting for midblock ‘walk’ signal.” Transp. Res. Rec. 2002 (1): 78–83. https://doi.org/10.3141/2002-10.
Walker, R., M. Winnett, A. Martin, and J. Kenndey. 2005. “Puffin crossing operation and behavior study.” Accessed June 19, 2021. https://content.tfl.gov.uk/puffin-behaviour-report.pdf.
Yang, Z., B. Wang, X. Yan, J. Ma, and W. Tang. 2019. “Improving pedestrian hybrid beacon crosswalk by using upstream detection strategy.” J. Adv. Transp. 2019: 11. https://doi.org/10.1155/2019/8491042.
Yu, C., W. Ma, H. K. Lo, and X. Yang. 2015. “Optimization of mid-block pedestrian crossing network with discrete demands.” Transp. Res. Part B: Methodol. 73 (Mar): 103–121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trb.2014.12.005.
Zhang, C., Y. Xie, N. H. Gartner, C. Stamatiadis, and T. Arsava. 2015. “AM-band: An asymmetrical multi-band model for arterial traffic signal coordination.” Transp. Res. Part C: Emerging Technol. 58 (Sep): 515–531. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trc.2015.04.014.
Zheng, C., G. Ma, J. Wu, X. Zhang, and X. Zhang. 2012. “A signal coordination control based on traversing empty between mid-block street crossing and intersection.” In Discrete dynamics in nature and society. London: Hindawi Publishing Corporation. https://doi.org/10.1155/2012/189316.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Copyright
© 2022 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jun 21, 2021
Accepted: Dec 14, 2021
Published online: Feb 4, 2022
Published in print: Apr 1, 2022
Discussion open until: Jul 4, 2022
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.
Cited by
- Louise Marie Nirere, Kayalvizhi Jayavel, Alexander Ngenzi, IoT-BASED CLIMATE CHANGE PREDICTION SYSTEM, Proceedings of the 2023 12th International Conference on Software and Computer Applications, 10.1145/3587828.3587862, (227-233), (2023).
- Weijie Chen, Feng Zhu, Xiaomeng Shi, Zhirui Ye, Modeling the Pedestrian Delay at Signalized Intersections with Two-Stage Crossing: Considering Physical Queuing Length, Journal of Transportation Engineering, Part A: Systems, 10.1061/JTEPBS.0000753, 148, 11, (2022).