Simulation Study in Munich Found Emergency Vehicles Experienced 15 to 51 Percent Fewer Traffic Conflicts When Equipped With Automated Vehicle Control Systems.
Simulation Study Using a Real Road Network Demonstrated Mobility Benefits of an Integrated Driving Control Strategy for Emergency Vehicles.
Munich, Germany
Automated Emergency Vehicle Control Strategy Based on Automated Driving Controls
Summary Information
Automated driving technologies offer opportunities to enhance the efficiency and safety of emergency vehicle (EMV) operations. This study explored an integrated driving control strategy that combines automated vehicle-level control with infrastructure-level signal preemption. The strategy was implemented in a microscopic traffic simulation of the Frankfurter Ring road section in Munich, Germany, and evaluated under varying driving aggressiveness levels and preemption initiation settings.
METHODOLOGY
In this study, the Enhanced Intelligent Driver Model (EIDM) was employed to govern the longitudinal control of vehicles, while lateral control was managed using a probabilistic lane change decision process. To assess the mobility and safety implications of different driving behaviors, a range of driving aggressiveness levels was defined. For signal control, a coordinated dynamic traffic signal preemption strategy was implemented to enable EMVs to traverse signalized intersections without delay, while also minimizing the negative impact on surrounding traffic. The simulated network included three signalized intersections and spanned a 4.18-kilometer (2.6-mile) section from the westernmost to the easternmost point. A total of 18 simulation scenarios were designed to systematically evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed EMV control strategy.
FINDINGS
- Results showed that EMVs experienced up to 35.2 percent less delays than normal traffic when using automated driving and signal preemption.
- The automated vehicle control decreased traffic conflicts by 15 to 51 percent, with the number of EMV-related conflicts ranging from 4.4 to 7.6 under automated control scenarios, compared to 8.9 conflicts in the base scenario.
