Signal Timing Strategy for Displaced Left Turn Intersections

Displaced left turn (DLT), also known as continuous flow intersection (CFI), is an innovative intersection designed to increase the mobility of an intersection by relocating its left turn lane (lanes) to the far-left side of the road at upstream location of the main signalized intersection. Since DLT is relatively new and only implemented in a few states, there are few existing guidelines available for designing DLT intersections. One of the critical elements when designing a DLT is the signal timing plan. An appropriate signal timing plan will maximum the intersection capacity, reduce congestion, and improve safety. The purpose of this research is to develop a comprehensive signal timing strategy for DLT intersections. To achieve this purpose, the research team will first review and summarize current design guidelines and research findings on how to design and optimize signal timing for DLT intersections. Then, a new DLT signal time design methodology will be proposed by considering various geometric configurations and traffic conditions. A DLT intersection located at Texas is selected as a case study location to apply and validate the signal timing strategy developed in this project. VISSIM simulation will be conducted to evaluate the developed signal timing method.

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Completed
• Funding: $81357
• Contract Numbers:

  69A3551747133

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Center for Advanced Multimodal Mobility Solutions and Education

  University of North Carolina, Charlotte
  Charlotte, NC  United States  28223

  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

  University Transportation Centers Program
  Department of Transportation
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Managing Organizations:

  University of North Carolina, Charlotte

  Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
  9201 University City Boulevard
  Charlotte, NC  United States  28223-0001
• Project Managers:

  Fan, Wei

• Performing Organizations:

  Texas Southern University, Houston

  3100 Cleburne Street
  Houston, TX  United States  77004
• Principal Investigators:

  Qi, Yi

• Start Date: 20181001
• Expected Completion Date: 20200930
• Actual Completion Date: 20200930

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: At grade intersections; Case studies; Geometric design; Highway design; Highway operations; Left turn lanes; Mobility; Optimization; Signalized intersections; Traffic flow; Traffic safety; Traffic signal timing
• Geographic Terms: Texas
• Subject Areas: Design; Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01699625
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Center for Advanced Multimodal Mobility Solutions and Education
• Contract Numbers: 69A3551747133
• Files: UTC, RIP
• Created Date: Mar 24 2019 5:10PM