Artificial bee colony-based algorithm for optimising traffic signal timings

Abstract

This study proposed Artificial Bee Colony (ABC) algorithm for finding optimal setting of traffic signals in coordinated signalized networks for given fixed set of link flows. For optimizing traffic signal timings in coordinated signalized networks, ABC with TRANSYT-7F (ABCTRANS) model is developed. The ABC algorithm is a new population-based metaheuristic approach, and it is inspired by the foraging behavior of honeybee swarm. TRANSYT-7F traffic model is used to estimate total network performance index (PI). The ABCTRANS is tested on medium sized signalized road network. Results showed that the proposed model is slightly better in signal timing optimization in terms of final values of PI when it is compared with TRANSYT-7F in which Genetic Algorithm (GA) and Hillclimbing (HC) methods are exist. Results also showed that the ABCTRANS model improves the medium sized network’s PI by 2.4 and 2.7% when it is compared with GA and HC methods. © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2014.