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Real-life Applications of Modeling and Simulation or intersection. Microscopic models are often used in this kind of
Transportation Modeling and Simulation simulation, which focuses on the movement of individual vehicles
• A well-functioning transportation system allows passengers and freights to base on car-following and lane-changing theories. These models are
constantly reach their destination fast and securely. effective in evaluating heavily congested conditions, complex
• Transportation systems are multimodal in nature. It encompasses variety geometric configurations, and system-level impacts of proposed
of ways to move goods and people. improvements (U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway
• The public and private sectors collaborate in the development and Administration, 2020).
operation of the different modes of transportation throughout the world.
• Modeling and simulation provide an ideal tool to examine transportation Engineers are focused on examining specific issues related to how a
problems. road is designed and controlled, rather than trying to forecast regional
• Modeling and simulation offers a cost-effective way to assess different trends. As a result, operational models often use microscopic methods
alternatives for addressing transportation-related problems, without to examine the individual reaction of drivers towards specific design
investing money in construction and minimizing or eliminating public risks. elements. Traffic signal operations, freeway merging and weaving,
• The results of modeling and simulation can then be used to illustrate the and access to property are some examples of operational issues that
effectiveness of different alternatives to the general public and the key can be assessed using operational models.
stakeholders, allowing them to make informed decisions for the project
(Sokolowski & Banks, 2009). • Model calibration is extremely important in transportation modeling and
• Modeling and simulation are widely applied in surface transportation, such simulation. Microscopic traffic simulation models may involve a three-step
as roads, highways, and railways. The two (2) common types of problem strategy which includes capacity calibration, route choice calibration, and
in surface transportation that use modeling and simulation are the system performance calibration.
following: • The selection of calibration measures is a crucial process, since field data
o Transportation planning problems are focused on traffic condition collection is usually involved. Measures should be relatively easy to
forecasting, typically five (5) to 20 years from the present. These kind collect, sensitive to changes in traffic, and the model should calculate the
measures in the same way as it is collected in the field.
of analyses are often regional in scope. Macroscopic models are often
used in this kind of simulation, which are based on the deterministic
relationship of traffic flow, speed, and density in the traffic stream. The
simulation in a macroscopic model takes place on a section-by-section
basis rather than tracking individual vehicles (U.S. Department of
Transportation Federal Highway Administration, 2020).
Almost every urban area maintains a macroscopic travel demand
model that is used to generate traffic condition forecasts. The
projections generated by the models are then used by the local
officials to prioritize where road improvements and other public
transportation systems should be made. The models use
socioeconomic data and roadway information to predict traffic network
conditions(Sokolowski & Banks, 2009).

o Transportation operations problems are focused on creating Table 1. Some commercially available transportation modeling and simulation software.
detailed analyses of small-scale problems, such as an individual road Source: Principles of Modeling and Simulation a Multidisciplinary Approach, 2009 p. 183

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Business Modeling and Simulation (Sokolowski & Banks, 2009) Social Science Modeling and Simulation (Sokolowski & Banks, 2009)
• Private industrial organizations began to apply modeling and simulation as • Social science involves multiple disciplines that study different human
a decision support tool in the late 1940s. Today, modeling and simulation aspects by applying scientific methods. Anthropology, comparative
is widely deployed across numerous business areas such as production theology, economics, political science, sociology, and psychology are
and operations, marketing and sales, accounting and finance, and even in some disciplines under social sciences.
the human resource department. All these were made possible through • Social science modeling and simulation allows the replication of human
the advancement of both hardware and software technologies. capabilities and reactions toward different scenarios, as it assists in the
• The typical applications of modeling and simulation, which is related to analysis of multiple hypotheses and diverse results.
business, can be categorized as the following: • Modeling and simulation can help in understanding social processes. It
o System analysis – The main purpose of simulations under this can be used to predict the features of an environment, such as the
category is to gain a better understanding of a system’s behavior to changing demographics of a region over a period of time and forecasting
improve its performance. business trends. It can be considered as a tool that facilitates the
o Acquisition and system acceptance – This category generally transformation of qualitative findings to quantitative values.
involves questions and answers associated to buying and/or • Social science modeling augments, supports, and provides various types
implementing a new system, which can possibly improve the business of mathematical formulation analyses that go with modeling and
processes in an organization. simulation. The quantitative and qualitative methods of social science
o Research – This involves the modeling and simulation of artificial inquiry actually lead to different modeling methods.
environments. The main objective of simulations under this category • The following are some social science modeling methods:
is to test the effects of different or multiple changes to system o Statistical modeling – It is a traditional method of discovery and
components, or the behavior of a group and/or an individual on interpretation of patterns in a large number of events.
system performance. o Formal modeling – It is a method that provides rigorous analytic
o Education and training – The simulations in this category are specifications and mathematical methodologies for specific
intended to develop a greater understanding and the ability to apply components, such as people and their preferences.
business ideas, concepts, and techniques, either for a student or a o Behavior modeling – It is a method that models human activity and
trainee. behavior from a psychological aspect. One good application of
modeling behavior is the game theory which can serve as a tool in
• Business simulation can be used as an agent for strategic change. It is studying the interactions of individuals, also called as players, in
frequently used in conjunction with advanced statistical analysis tools and various contexts such as social dilemmas or combative situations, so
with the traditional tools of management science. that decision makers can determine the best course of action.
• Relatively simple simulation models can be created and implemented to o Social network modeling – It is a modeling method that
facilitate what-if analyses using plug-ins to off-the-shelf spreadsheet encompasses social behaviors by considers the different relationships
modeling programs. derived from statistical analysis of relational data. This method can
• Business modeling and simulation demonstrates that well-designed also provide an explanation about the flow of information, the spread
simulation studies with concrete results can be used to drive change within of contagion, and identify outliers from a particular group.
organizations at all levels: operational, tactical, and strategic planning and
execution.
• Modeling and simulation professionals are responsible for managing the References:
Sokolowski, J. & Banks, C. (2009). Principles of modeling and simulation a multidisciplinary approach. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
expectations of stakeholders, and in making sure that simulations are U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). (2020, November 2). Traffic analysis tools program. Retrieve
carefully applied such that organizations and businesses may continue to on May 14, 2021 from https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/trafficanalysistools/type_tools.htm

benefits from well-designed and properly executed simulation studies.

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