Browsing by Author "Eyram Kwashie Ashigbie, Festus"

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    Traffic sequencing with genetic algorithm Case study: La Paz traffic intersection
    (March 23, 2016) Eyram Kwashie Ashigbie, Festus
    Managing traffic flow at complex intersections is a challenging task. The intersection under study is situated at La Paz on the N1 highway. One can see wreckages of crushed vehicles at different locations of the highway. Within one month of its commissioning, the road registered fifteen (15) accidents with huge loses to life and property. Between February 2012 and December 2013, 489 accidents had been recorded on the road with 350 people sustaining severe injuries. Two hundred (200) pedestrians had also been knocked down by speeding cars while 70 pedestrians died on the spot. These accidents occur when pedestrians attempt to cross the road. Some identified causes of these accidents are inefficient traffic order sequence, inadequate green time allocation, and non-user friendly traffic installations. The breadth of the highway is about 50 metres with no islands for pedestrians use. There are no overhead footbridge or underground passage at the intersection for pedestrian use. These causes lots of chaos at the intersection and leads to road block and heavy traffic during rush hours. To save lives and properties, and improve traffic flow, the intersection is investigated to propose new ways of improving pedestrian safety and traffic flow sequence. Genetic Algorithm approach was used to find an optimal traffic flow sequence for the intersection. The intersection was simplified into a ’plus’ intersection that has traffic streams moving in fourteen directions. The streams were encoded and put through the genetic algorithm process. The output was evaluated for both computational efficiency and accuracy. The program returned a flow sequence that is very efficient. It gives hope that soon, the chaos and accidents at the intersection will become history.