With the increase of the highway tunnel length and the total mileage of tunnels under operation, the potential safe driving issues in tunnels are urgent problems to be solved. The author proposed an intelligent traffic control strategy base on the tunnel control unit concept. The paper proposed the definition and division principle of the tunnel control unit, established the model of tunnel traffic flow control strategy and explained the decision-making process of tunnel control units’ traffic flow control strategies under accident and congestion conditions. Using the VISSIM simulation tool, the author built a simulation model for the immersed tunnel of cross-river link between Shenzhen and Zhongshan (Shenzhong Link) and took a traffic accident condition as a case study. Compared with the traffic flow status under controlled and uncontrolled conditions, the results showed that the traffic control strategy worked efficiently for improving traffic speed and reducing the delay time.

Highway;Tunnel;Traffic Flow;Control strategy;Vissim