Temporary traffic management implications of reconfiguring existing motorways to accommodate dedicated Connected Autonomous Trucks (CAT) lanes - A travel delay perspective

Abstract

Connected Autonomous Vehicles (CAVs) will likely share the same roads with legacy vehicles. There are many options for reconfiguring existing roads to accommodate CAVs, but one model that could be deployed effectively on motorways is to assign a dedicated nearside lane for Connect Autonomous Trucks (CATs). The precise wheel-path tracking capability of CATs permits nonstandard width to be used for this dedicated lane, which impacts on the remaining space for legacy vehicles and, hence temporary traffic management (TTM) designs. Currently, there is limited research quantifying and comparing TTM delay implications of different non-standard cross-sections incorporating CAT lanes. This study details performance of various cross-section alternatives under TTM conditions during rehabilitation works. Lane width-speed models are used to calculate delays, and vehicle travel time-cost relationships are applied to determine cost of each scenario. Next, pavement analysis predicts frequency of these rehabilitations. Finally, travel delay cost of each configuration is calculated and compared.