Field Theory for Some Traffic Phenomena and Fundamental Diagram

Abstract

A fundamental diagram consists of a scatter of traffic flow data sampled at a specific location and aggregated from vehicle trajectories. These trajectories, if presented equivalently, constitute a microscopic version of the (conventional) fundamental diagram. The cross-reference between vehicle trajectories and the microscopic fundamental diagram provides details of vehicle motion dynamics which allow causal-effect analysis on some traffic phenomena and further reveal the microscopic basis of the conventional fundamental diagram. This observation inspires theoretical modeling by a microscopic approach to address traffic phenomena and the conventional fundamental diagram. Derived from the field theory of traffic flow, the longitudinal control model is capable of serving the purpose without the modifications or exceptions used by other approaches.