What about space?: A simulation based assessment of AVs impact on road space in urban areas

Abstract

It is widely acknowledged that fully autonomous vehicles (AVs) will have a significant impact on mobility. However, we lack a detailed understanding of their effects on traffic operations and space allocation. This study analyses the impact of AVs on road space. Simulation experiments are run in order to find how much of the road space could be reclaimed for other purposes while complying to certain traffic flux targets. Operationally, this can be described using macro fundamental diagrams (MFDs), which provide the relation between traffic flux and traffic density (and therefore space). We find that for the same amount of trips, AVs can decrease the road space needed by around 11-12% compared to conventional vehicles (CVs). At the same time, given the existing road infrastructure, AVs potentially triple trips. These findings not only emphasize the effect that AVs will have on mobility, but also give a first insight on how road space allocation to vehicles should be re-evaluated.