Applications of microsimulation traffic data in infrastructure construction projects using 3D/4D CAD models

Transportation projects often involve communication of project information between diverse parties and have been a challenge with increasing complexity. Communication, review and feedback are very important for planners, builders/developers and traffic engineers for successful project execution. Past research was successful in finding effective ways to communicate to stakeholders and improve project performance. 3D/4D CAD modeling has been one among them which offers potential benefits from planning to construction phase owing to its wide range of capabilities. However, there is no single tool to analyze traffic conditions and changing geometry during construction for reviewing and better decision-making. A methodology to use DTA models as a source for traffic information and development of traffic visualization during construction with microsimulation output is discussed in this thesis. The benefits of adding traffic information to 3D/4D CAD models and some potential areas of application are explored. Two case studies on TxDOT transportation construction projects are considered to explain the modeling and analysis for better understanding of different phases of the projects. Also, a small construction scenario was analyzed to validate the traffic data generated from DTA models for their use as an input to microsimulation models.