Integrated Traffic and Air Quality Simulation
by Matthias Schmidt, Birgit Kwella, Heiko Lehmann, Christian Motschke
and Ralf-Peter Schäfer
The aim of the project SIMTRAP (HPCN Simulation of Traffic Induced
Air Pollution Using Parallel Computing in a Distributed Network) is to
create an integrated simulation system for modelling both the traffic and
the air quality, particularly for medium term planning. The system will
be able to address most issues of the transport-environment link, such
as traffic volumes, demand profile, and fleet composition from the traffic
point of view, and (industrial) sources of pollutants, orography of the
model area, land use, and meteorological conditions from the air pollution
side. SIMTRAP is a European cooperation project funded by the European
Commission within the ESPRIT Programme.
The link between vehicular traffic and air pollution is well established.
For example, road traffic accounts for more than 70% of the overall nitrogen
oxides and more than 55% of the overall volatile organic compounds emission
in the Berlin region. For this reason, authorities in urban areas need
support in managing road traffic so as to avoid exceeding pollution limits
during hot summer periods. To date, much of the past modelling work concerning
transport and air pollution has concentrated on long term strategies, where
the effects on air quality indirectly may be expressed through energy use
and emission reduction.
The increasing demand on the travel system and the tightening of many
environmental standards, however, require to focus more on developing medium
term strategies, eg on strategies during the closure of streets due to
adverse meteorological conditions or severe reconstructions, or the guidance
during special events. For developing medium term strategies, the demand
on integration between the traffic models and the air quality models is
the highest. Integrated dynamic tools are required to assess alternative
strategies, and to select the most appropriate one.
The SIMTRAP System
SIMTRAP centres around two well-established core components: the mesoscopic
dynamic traffic model DYNEMO (Dynamic Net Model) and the air pollution
model system DYMOS (Dynamic Models for Smog Analysis). Due to the complexity
of the simulated processes, both modules are being implemented in a remote
HPCN environment. The simulation results will be visualized in a local
3D Geographical Information System with built-in functionality for decision
support. Communication is realized using existing computer networks and
standard protocols.
The Models Used in SIMTRAP
DYNEMO is a simulation tool for both urban and rural road networks.
It has already been used to simulate large parts of the German motorway
network. Regarding the movement of vehicles, DYNEMO is a mesoscopic model
in the sense that it combines properties of both microscopic and macroscopic
models. As in microscopic models, the unit of traffic flow is the individual
vehicle. Their movement, however, follows the approach of macroscopic models
and is governed by the average traffic density on the link the vehicles
travel.
DYMOS is a simulation system to analyse the generation, dispersion,
and chemical transformation of gaseous air pollutants and different aerosols.
The model is well suited to reproduce most frequent occurring kind of smog
situations, in particular summer smog which is mainly caused by traffic
emissions.
SIMTRAP Applications
Besides GMD Institute for Computer Architecture and Software Technology,
Berlin, SIMTRAP involves participants from Austria, Italy and the Netherlands.
In order to demonstrate the functionality of the system and to validate
the obtained simulation results, the SIMTRAP prototype will be applied
by potential users at the four tests: Berlin, Vienna, Milan and the Ranstaad
area in the Netherlands.
All test sites differ considerably in size, geographical realities,
and considered traffic network, and therefore are well suited to test the
complexity of the SIMTRAP system.
More information about the HITERM project is available at http://www.first.gmd.de/applications/proj/hiterm_more.html
Please contact:
Matthias Schmidt
Tel: +49 30 6392 1815
E-mail: schmidt@first.gmd.de
