A continuous-time linear complementarity system for dynamic user equilibria in single bottleneck traffic flows

This paper formally introduces a linear complementarity system (LCS) formulation for a continuous-time, multi-user class, dynamic user equilibrium (DUE) model for the determination of trip timing decisions in a simplified single bottleneck model. Existence of a Lipschitz solution trajectory to the model is established by a constructive time-stepping method whose convergence is rigorously analyzed. The solvability of the time-discretized subproblems by Lemke’s algorithm is also proved. Combining linear complementarity with ordinary differential equations and being a new entry to the mathematical programming field, the LCS provides a computational tractable framework for the rigorous treatment of the DUE problem in continuous time; this paper makes a positive contribution in this promising research venue pertaining to the application of differential variational theory to dynamic traffic problems.