Model to locate sensors for estimation of static origin-destination volumes given prior flow information

Static origin-destination (O-D) matrices that specify the number of trips from each origin to each destination are usually needed for several transportation planning and operations decisions. One approach to the estimation of an O-D matrix is to use data from traditional counting sensors on links in conjunction with models or assumptions on how vehicular traffic uses the network. A closely related problem is to locate a given number of counting sensors to obtain good estimates of O-D flows. In this paper, a new linear integer programming model for the placement of the sensors at a location to maximize the reduction in the uncertainties in route flows estimates is presented. The model assumes a general underlying traffic loading model, as long as the route choice set from each origin to each destination is known and prior route flows and their reliabilities for each O-D route are given. Extensive computational experiments and comparisons with some existing sensor location models indicate that the proposed model consistently gives good estimates of O-D flows.