Analysis, modeling and simulation framework for performance evaluation of the Wyoming connected vehicle pilot deployment program

Wyoming was selected as one of three sites to develop, test, and deploy a suite of Connected Vehicle (CV) applications on a 402-mile of Interstate 80. It is expected that after full deployment of the technology, the pilot will improve safety and mobility by creating new ways to communicate road and travel information to both drivers and fleet managers. One of the key tasks of this pilot is to evaluate the performance of the Wyoming CV system. This paper presents a framework of using microsimulation modeling for performance evaluation of the Wyoming CV Pilot. It describes the opportunities of using microsimulation modeling for performance evaluation, procedure of model calibration and data needs for model calibration, challenges due to data acquirement process specific to the deployment and solutions to the expected challenges. It was concluded that microsimulation modeling is a low-cost approach for assessing the performance of CV systems, particularly when testing various CV strategies and/or CV penetration rates. Nevertheless, the accuracy of the simulation results highly depends on the calibration of microsimulation models. Ultimately, lessons learned from the Wyoming CV Pilot performance evaluation effort will provide added insights to states and transportation professionals that embark on similar initiatives.