Variations in Urban Traffic

The traffic network is operating close to capacity in many urban traffic networks. Unexpected and small fluctuations in traffic flow can then result in a significant disruption in the level of service. In fact, accumulated local and short-term fluctuations pose a serious risk to actors operating in the urban traffic domain who aim for decisions with stable performance under all conditions. Robust decisions anticipate the uncertainty in the sense that the potential effects of local, yet natural fluctuations are incorporated during the decision-making process. This thesis investigates urban traffic variations on different scales and explores the potential of using volume predictions to improve pro-active decision-making processes.