Localization of disturbances in transportation systems

We present a control strategy for localization and attenuation of disturbances in transportation systems. Sudden and large disturbances in a transportation network can lead to the creation and propagation of shock waves which spread throughout the system causing jams and decreasing system throughput. By considering the Cell Transmission Model of traffic flow, we design a minimum-energy controller that exploits inter-vehicle communication to localize shock waves to small sections of the highway and attenuate them within a specified period of time. The control design is illustrated through simulations on realistic data from the I-210 highway in California.