Assessing temporary traffic management measures on a motorway: Lane closures vs narrow lanes for connected and autonomous vehicles in roadworks

Abstract

Connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) are being developed and designed to operate on existing roads. Their safe and efficient operation during roadworks, where traffic management measures are often introduced, is crucial. Two alternative measures are commonly applied during roadworks on motorways: (i) closing one or multiple lanes (ii) narrowing one or all lanes. The former can cause delays and increased emissions, while the latter can pose safety risks. This study uses a VISSIM‐based traffic microsimulation to compare the effectiveness of these two strategies on traffic efficiency and safety, considering various market penetration rates (MPR) of CAVs. The model was calibrated and validated with the data collected from M1 motorway in the United Kingdom. Results show that average delays per vehicle‐kilometre‐travelled decreased from 102.7 to 2.5 s (with lane closure) and 23.6 to 0.6 s (with narrow lanes) with 0% and 100% CAV MPR, respectively. Moreover, safety in narrow lanes improved by 4.8 times compared to 1.5 times improvement in lane closure with a 100% CAV MPR; indicating that narrow lanes would result in better safety performance. These findings could assist transport authorities in designing temporary traffic management measure that results in better CAV performance when navigating through roadworks.