ICM AMS Pioneer Sites

• U.S. DOT Goals of AMS Phase
• AMS Pioneer Site Activities
• AMS Pioneer Site Models
• Preliminary Results
• Summary Results

In late 2008, Dallas, TX; Minneapolis, MN; and San Diego, CA were selected by the United States Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) to conduct analysis, modeling, and simulation (AMS) of their ICM strategies. The ICM AMS Pioneer Sites have been built models to analyze how the proposed application of ICM strategies would affect their respective corridors under different conditions (such as planned special events, high traffic congestion, or major incidents).

U.S. DOT Goals of the AMS Phase

• Validate that the tools and approach meet the analysis needs for ICM-calibrated and validated models, and confidence in model results.
• Use tools available in the marketplace today to implement ICM and ensure that these tools can be used to perform the analysis necessary for ICM.
• Reduce DOT investment risk in Demonstration Sites - AMS will illustrate potential ICM benefit and show that AMS will enable Sites to refine their ICM strategies.
• Continue to foster the development of ICM through collaboration with all the Pioneer Sites' public agency and private sector champions.

AMS Pioneer Site Activities

The following activities were conducted as a part of the AMS stage of the ICM Initiative. Each site:

• Developed analysis plans;
• Developed data collection plans;
• Conducted data collection;
• Assembled and built AMS tools;
• Calibrated and calibrated the baseline models;
• Analyzed strategy alternatives, and
• Produced performance measures analysis.

AMS Pioneer Site Models

Each pioneer site integrated macro-, meso- and microscopic simulation tool types and combining their capabilities to model various aspects of each ICM corridor. A summary of the models used to support AMS activities is provided below:

Preliminary Results

General Results

• ICM improves mobility.
  • Travel time, delay and corridor throughput are improved after ICM implementation.
• ICM helps improve the reliability of travel time.
• ICM helps reduce fuel consumption and mobile emissions.

Benefits versus Costs

• ICM is a great investment for all three sites. Both Benefit-Cost ratios and 10-year net benefits are positive and significant across all three sites.
• Improved travel time reliability is the largest benefit of ICM. Reduced travel time is the second largest benefit, followed by fuel consumption and emissions benefits.
• ICM strategies produce more benefits at higher levels of travel demand and during non-recurrent congestion.

AMS Methodology Improvements

• The ICM AMS effort improved analysis tools and methods.
  • New tools for analysis of transit, congestion pricing, HOT lanes, ramp metering, and active traffic management
  • Improved model calibration and data analysis methods

Summary Results

Benefits were calculated using consistent methodologies across the three sites. 10-year net benefits are larger in Dallas than in the other two sites because Dallas ICM affects a larger area than the other two sites. Benefit-cost ratios are similar between Dallas and Minneapolis (20:1 and 22:1, respectively) and 10:1 for San Diego. This difference may be a function of how costs were reported by the sites, including cost breakdown and ICM costs versus more general ITS costs.

Check out the ICM Knowledgebase for more information about the ICM AMS Sites, including magazine articles, presentations, and reports.

• Dallas Pioneer Site
• Minneapolis Pioneer Site
• San Diego Pioneer Site