Modeling Four-Directional Pedestrian Flows

Abstract

The objective of this study is to explore the modeling of multidirectional pedestrian flows. The complex interactions between flow entities within m-directional space present challenges that cannot be readily handled by existing bidirectional flow models. A cellular automata microsimulation model for four-directional flow is prescribed. This model, built on previous bidirectional models developed by the authors, additionally seeks to manage cross-directional conflicts. Performance of this function in the simulation of unidirectional, bidirectional, cross-directional, and four-directional flows is presented. The applications extend to m-directional terminal facility design and to four-directional street corners, a vital component in any network model of pedestrians.