Strategic management of traffic in Kent using MOLA

As part of the Highways Agency's plans to make the best use of existing roads, it is increasingly common for key intersections of the English strategic road network to be provided with variable message signs (VMS). The new generation of motorway signals, incorporating an EMS (enhanced message sign), can also be used to provide strategic information, in support of their primary role in tactical control. The article concerns the difficulties operators of strategic diversion systems face in selecting the correct diversion for a given incident, and the Highways Agency's research programme to develop a real-time network model which could be used to assist operators in making that decision, including the early off-line trials of MOLA (MCONTRM On-Line Assistant) on the Birmingham Box network, and its subsequent implementation in Kent. This paper reports on the experience gained in operating the MOLA system for over 15 months, gives examples of its use and indicates the next steps in MOLA's development.