Sub-problem 5a: Network Simulation

Step 2. Results

The most interesting result from the simulation model is predictions of travel times through the network. Exhibit 4-79 presents a selected set of those values. You can see that it takes 467 seconds (seven minutes and 47 seconds) to go from a point 300 feet south of the 23^rd Street off- ramp to a point 2,600 feet north of the merge between I-87 and the right-hand ramp from NY-7 to I-87. These values are valuable in indicating where travel times are within acceptable ranges and where they are not. Geometric improvements may help some O-D pairs and not others or alleviate congestion in one place and create it in another. These travel times help to keep track of those impacts and relationships.

Another output that’s particularly valuable is speeds through the weaving sections. Weaving sections tend to be bottleneck locations. Exhibit 4-80 shows speeds for weaving and non-weaving vehicles at a number of locations in the subarea network, based on the simulation model outputs. Data for locations 1-7 are shown in Exhibit 4-80. The slowest speeds are on Alternate Route 7 at the I-787 interchange on the collector-distributor road between the loop ramp from I-787 south and the loop ramp to I-787 north. The rest of the speeds are in the 50-60 mph range, indicating acceptable operation.