Perimeter Control of Urban Traffic Networks Based on Model-Free Adaptive Control

In urban traffic networks, abundant traffic data is generated everyday. Therefore, data-driven control approaches for urban traffic control without utilizing mathematical models might be a promising research direction. In this paper, a hierarchical perimeter control strategy for urban traffic networks based on model-free adaptive control (MFAC) scheme is proposed. At the outer level, the signal settings in the periphery of the congested region are optimized to meter the number of vehicles entering the congested region; while at the inner level, traffic flow distribution within the congested region is adjusted to improve the traffic efficiency. MFAC scheme is applied in both outer level and inner level to derive the detailed signal settings in the congested region and in the periphery of the congested region. Joint simulations using VISSIM and MATLAB verify the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed method.