Optimal traffic control in freeway networks with bottlenecks

We consider optimally coordinated freeway traffic control fornetworks containing bottlenecks with capacity drop.Due to the multitude of traffic jams, and the spatial andtemporal relationships between control actions and trafficbehavior, this coordinated control problem is not asstraightforward as for local control. The order in which themeasures are applied may be relevant, or it may be possible thatnot all jams can be resolved. In that case the best possiblelocations of jams should be determined. We develop an approachthat addresses these problems, where we use a generalizedrepresentation of flow-limiting control measures and bottlenecks.The approach supplies the necessary sequence of control actions and the necessary relocation of traffic jams to minimize the total timethat vehicles spend in the network.