Speed reduction on merging sections in mixed traffic: a case study

Driver behavioral studies on merging sections in mixed traffic conditions constituting weak lane discipline are not explicitly studied. This paper provides a case study on vehicle merging process and evaluates speed reduction at merging sections for different vehicle types with various vehicle compositions and flow levels. It provides a literature of research on merging traffic. Further, it explores parameters necessary to be adopted for mixed traffic conditions. Speed reduction on a 2 lane main road due to merging of a two lane ramp section in Navi Mumbai, India is studied by calculating traffic speed and flow levels at various sections before and after the merging. Vehicle type wise speed reduction is evaluated. The result indicated that traffic speeds on main road and ramps are significantly affected due to the increase in flow levels on the ramp. Further, increase in percentage of two wheelers also cause a reduction in speed. However, composition of heavy vehicles do not have a significant effect on speed reduction. Cars constitute the maximum reduction in speed among all vehicle types studied. The results of this study provide a measure of effectiveness of the merging section. Reduction in speed causes delays and affect travel times over a larger network, thus effective management of traffic on merging sections can include innovative ways to improve traffic speeds.