Development of microscopic simulation model for heterogeneous traffic using object oriented approach

Roads in India carry heterogeneous traffic with wide variations in static and dynamic characteristics of vehicles. The traffic flow is also generally devoid of lane discipline, with vehicles occupying any available road space ahead. Modeling of Such heterogeneous traffic is generally complex in nature and simulation has been proven to be effective in Studying Such traffic. This paper presents the development of a model through object oriented programming (OOP) approach for simulating heterogeneous traffic. Several unique traffic characteristics have been considered in the modeling process. C++ language is used for this purpose. OOP leads to better structured codes for simulation and facilitates the development, maintainability and expandability of such codes. The first part of the paper explains the various logics of simulation such as vehicle generation, vehicle placement and vehicle movement. The second part of the paper describes the features of OOP, description of classes and class relationships. The last part of the paper presents the validation and advantages of the developed model.