Using a Living Laboratory to Support Transportation Research for a Freeway Work Zone

This paper presents the concept of a living laboratory (LL) and how it is applied to transportation operations research through a case study. This case study focuses on calibrating the Wiedemann car-following model parameters specific to freeway work zones. Applying the concept of an LL enables the experimental platform to be in a natural real-world environment. The design of this LL included the development of an instrumented research vehicle (IRV) to capture the natural car-following response of a driver when entering and passing through a freeway work zone. The development of a connected mobile traffic sensing (CMTS) system, which included state-of-the-art intelligent transportation systems (ITS) technologies, supports the LL environment by providing the connectivity, interoperability, and data processing of the natural, real-life setting. The IRV and CMTS system are tools designed based on the research objective to support the concept of an LL which facilitates the experimental environment to capture and calibrate natural driver behavior. This case study shows the application of an LL specific to operations research providing an experimental platform for evaluating the operational performance of a roadway in a real-time, connected, and collaborative natural environment.