A DELAY MODEL FOR MULTIWAY STOP-SIGN INTERSECTIONS

A limited number of empirical studies have examined the capacity and delay characteristics of multiway stop signs, and some simulation studies have been reported, but no analytical models of delay at multiway stop signs are available in the published literature. The objective of the research reported in this paper, therefore, is the development of such an analytical model of delays experienced at multiway stop-sign intersections. The paper draws on previously reported empirical observations to provide values of critical input parameters, and uses these within the framework of an M/G/1 queueing model to predict delays. Delays at a multiway stop sign are shown to be the result of a set of complex interactions between the flows on all approaches to the intersection. It is shown that there are primary, secondary, and tertiary influences on the delays experienced on the approach; namely, the flow on that approach, the flows on conflicting approaches, and the flows on opposite approaches. In comparison with previously quoted results for multiway stop-sign intersections, the model shows good agreement in terms of capacities and levels of service for various demand splits. What the model adds, however, is the ability to predict levels of performance over a much wider range of operating conditions.