Micro-Simulation Model for Modeling Freight Agents Interactions in Urban Freight Movement

This paper proposes a micro-simulation model for urban freight movement, in which the behavior of freight agents and their relationship in supply chains are incorporated. The proposed model is a modification of the traditional four-step approach in that it considers the behavior of each freight agent individually. This paper covers three of the four steps of the traditional approach, including commodity production and consumption, commodity distribution, and conversion of commodity flows to truck flows. The results from the model will be truck OD matrices and the approximated VKT of trucks by each truck type. The proposed model utilizes the concepts on logistics and operation research to explain the behavior of each freight agent while dealing with freight movement. This paper will discuss the issues on the model framework, model formulations, and validation results of the model applying to analyze the urban freight movement in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area.