Evaluation Of Dynamic Message Signs And Their Potential Impact On Traffic Flow

Maryland State Highway Administration (SHA) has a rich data archive of the messages posted to the Dynamic Message Signs (DMS) and the time stamps when they were posted and taken down. The archive also contains traffic information surrounding the DMS signs, such as traffic volumes and speeds from various point or probe-based sensors. In this project, the research team used this data archive to study the impact of DMS messages on traffic conditions. Multiple Bluetooth sensors were deployed on a major travel corridor in the Baltimore Metropolitan Area to determine vehicle travel times and to monitor traffic diversions.