Applying Optimal Control to Minimize Energy Use Due to Road Infrastructure Expansion

Abstract

It is assumed that traffic jams have negative environmental effects. This implies an overlap between transportation policy and environmental policy. This paper quantifies the relative energy effects of congested traffic. By comparing these effects to the energy costs of construction and maintenance of roads, it is possible to balance those effects. The paper determines how fast and to what level the road infrastructure should expand, under the condition that life cycle energy consumption of the transportation system is minimized. By using the Pontryagin maximum principle, it is shown that optimal control theory can provide the solution that minimizes energy use. The paper concludes that the level of final expansion depends on the highest construction effort possible.

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