Environment Friendly Optimization of Transportation Networks: Analysis Over Small Sized Real Network

by Muhammed Raşit Çevikalp | Dec 19, 2022

Project Title: Environment Friendly Optimization of Transportation Networks: Analysis Over Small Sized Real Network
Project Type: TÜBİTAK-1001
Project Coordinator: Prof. Dr. Hilmi Berk Çelikoğlu

Aim of the proposed study, supported through TUBITAK 1001 Programme with around USD110000 of budget, is modeling, analysis, and policy setting for improvement in the purpose of minimizing the environmental impacts of vehicles’ exhaust gas emissions over small sized real traffic network of a settlement in one of the central business districts of a metropolitan city using mainly the existing network traffic flows and the commuting prefrences in conjunction with the environmentally friend and/or energy-efficient objective functions in the optimization sought. Since the context of the study proposed enables the impact analysis of the effects of both the sustainable and the efficient use of the natural resources and the production of environmentally friend and high katma değer products with clean technologies to prevent environmental degradations –as adopted from the agreements of the international bodies, and as well the strategies and the policies– on the environment and mobility; its contributions to the optimization in environmentally freind transportation network design in terms of approaches at decision making level and in terms of methods and employments at the modeling level are novel.

The subject is formulated as an environment-friendly traffic assignment problem within the network design context. The solution approaches have varied as the solutions are sought: considering both the entire assignment process and its demand and supply components in part; and considering the subject as a multi-objective bi-level optimization problem. Due to the inherent characteristics of the solution existing as the consideration of a real world network with relatively complex characteristics –when compared with existing test networks for benchmarking- and the need to the time-varying dynamic solution of the problem, a simulation-based method is employed. In the cases that a number of scenarios required, exact solutions to the specific problems are sought as well. Accordingly, to obtain the simulation-based dynamic solution, a network traffic simulation software –that is intervened via its API (application programing interface) in the purpose of redefining objective functions and constraints and that is integrated to an existing emission model– is utilized.

With the analyses conducted on the scenarios, approaches to minimization of vehicles’ exhaust gas emissions are proposed that aim: directly the reduction of traffic-based gas emissions and the consequent air quality; and indirectly the external cost of road-based transportation’s impacts on environment. The modeling and solution framework proposed throughout the study is expected to be a sample for the optmization of relatively larger scale networks.

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İTÜ Faculty of Civil Engineering

It can be accepted that the history of ITU Civil Engineering Faculty was commenced in 1727 by the establishment of Humbarahane during the era of Damat İbrahim Paşa. However, this attempt was to no avail due to the martyrization of the studwents of this school by the Janissaries.

In 1734, during the grand viziership of Topal Osman Paşa, classes related to Civil Engineering was being taught in Hendesehane, which was founded in Üsküdar. Similarly, this school was also closed after three years due to the opposition of the Janissaries. The reasons of the tragedy that occured in Battle of Chesma, 1770 were inadequacy of the ships and the ignorance of the Ottoman Navy.

Although the Atlantic Map (1513) and the Map of Europe and the Mediterranean Sea (1523) by Piri Reis were the leading pieces of the era, Ottoman viziers were so ignorant that they claimed it was impossible for the Russian Baltic Fleet to reach the Mediterranean Sea assuming that there were no sea connection. With the proposal from Gazi Hasan Paşa and Baron de Tott, Mühendishane-i Bahri-i Humayun was established during the time of Sultan Mustafa III, aiming to train naval construction engineers. Since Ottoman Empire did not have any engineering schools at the time, military engineering classes were taught by French engineers beginning from 1784. French lecturers had to return to their country in 1788 with the increasing suppression from Austria and Russia, which were unwilling for the development and thriving of Ottoman Empire. In 1759, during the Grand Viziership of Koca Ragıp Paşa, Humbarahane was reopened in Karaağaç, Haliç (Golden Horn) and continued to teach even though it was incompetent. In 1792, Lağımcı Ocağı and Humbaracı Ocağı (Guild of Sappers) were established.