Operations Research 2025
Abstract Submission

2333. Minimizing Vehicle Delay Time in a Port Area Through Simulation Optimization of Traffic Light Control

Invited abstract in session WC-1: Port and shipping logistics, stream Mobility, Transportation, and Traffic.

Wednesday, 13:30-15:00
Room: Audimax

Authors (first author is the speaker)

1. Bruna Helena Pedroso Fabrin
Institute for Operations Research, Universität Hamburg
2. Wolfgang Brüggemann
Inst. f. Operations Research, Universität Hamburg
3. Larissa Timm
HPA
4. Alwin Brehde
Hamburg Port Consulting
5. Carsten Eckert
Hamburg Port Consulting
6. Ralf Sahling
Hamburg Port Consulting
7. Justin Wilckens
HPC, TUHH
8. Julia Hertel
University of Hamburg
9. Ulrich Baldauf
R&D, Hamburg Port Consulting
10. Leif-Erik Gorris
Hamburg Port Consulting

Abstract

In a port area, traffic demand can greatly vary depending on the hour of the day and travel direction. For example, more traffic can be expected in certain hours of the day in the direction of a terminal in order to unload or load cargo. This can lead to congestion and delays. Thus, drivers are more susceptible of being irritated or making mistakes due to staying too long in traffic. One way of working on this issue is by optimizing the traffic light control, so that traffic flow is considerably improved. This study is conducted within the IHATEC’s HafenPlanZen project, which was developed to aid port planners in strategic decision making, such as traffic planning and adaptation.
An important measure of traffic is Average Delay Time (ADT), which is defined as the extra time that vehicles need to complete their journey due to disruptions, such as congestion or traffic lights, in comparison to driving on a free path. This study had the goal of robustly minimizing the maximum ADT in a port area, because this represents the worst case of the rush hour traffic. To achieve this, we use a simulation optimization methodology and implement the Downhill Simplex Method. Results shows large improvements in travel times with maximum delay being about 5 times smaller than that of the initial solution considered.

Keywords

Status: accepted

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