Modelling driver response to variable message signs with RGCONTRAM

Driver information systems are an increasingly important tool for traffic management. However, it is often difficult to quantify the benefits of these systems and to identify how the systems are most effectively used. Forecasting the network impacts of driver information systems requires an understanding of the ways in which drivers respond to information and this paper describes methods that have been used to identify driver response and incorporate it in RGCONTRAM, a dynamic traffic assignment model, The paper focuses on two types of driver information: variable message signs informing drivers of incidents; and variable message signs indicating car park space availability.