Application of the Theory of a Single First Order Equation to Traffic Flow

Authors

  • Harideo Chaudhary

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3126/jie.v9i1.10681

Keywords:

Traffic flow problem, Equation of continuity, Relation between density-flow, Concentration of vehicles, Kinematics and characteristic waves

Abstract

Few years ago, Lighthill and Whitham (1955) published a lengthy paper dealing with the theory of highway traffic flow .The basic idea in their approach to the problem is that the flow of traffic along a highway is analogous to the flow of a fluid in an open channel or pipe. This point of view replaces a long column of closely spaced discrete moving vehicles with an equivalent continuous moving stream of liquid (e.g. water) or gas (e.g. air). In other words, Lighthill and Whitham analyzed the phenomenon of traffic flow as though it were a problem in fluid mechanics. This approach allows some, though certainly not all, of the physical and mathematical relationships of hydrodynamics and aerodynamics to be utilized in the traffic flow problem. (Bank, p. 272)

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/jie.v9i1.10681

Journal of the Institute of Engineering, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 175–181

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Author Biography

Harideo Chaudhary

Department of Engineering Science and Humanities, Institute of Engineering, Central Campus, Pulchowk, Tribhuvan University

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Published

2014-06-30

How to Cite

Chaudhary, H. (2014). Application of the Theory of a Single First Order Equation to Traffic Flow. Journal of the Institute of Engineering, 9(1), 175–181. https://doi.org/10.3126/jie.v9i1.10681

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Articles