Calibration of Work Zone Impact Analysis Software for Missouri

This project calibrated two software programs used for estimating the traffic impacts of work zones. The WZ Spreadsheet and VISSIM programs were recommended in a previous study by the authors. The two programs were calibrated using field data from two work zones in Missouri. Both work zones involved a single lane closure on a three-lane section of roadway. The I-44 work zone was a long-term work zone, while the I-70 work zone was temporary, lasting only a few hours. The capacity values required for calibration were nearly identical for the two programs: 1,575 veh/hr/ln for the WZ Spreadsheet and 1,514 veh/hr/ln for the VISSIM program. The VISSIM driving behavior parameters CC1, CC2, and SRF were also computed. The study found that a calibration based on delay or travel time exhibited better overall performance than a calibration based on queue length. In the future, additional case studies could be added to further calibrate the two models for different work zone lane configurations, such as a one-lane closure on a two-lane segment or a two-lane closure on a three-lane segment.