Modeling the Traffic Impacts During Evacuation of a Suburban University Campus: A Case Study

University Campuses are at high risk during natural and man-made disasters because of higher concentration of population and buildings. During emergency situations, traffic congestion may occur because of high traffic volume and also various traffic conflicts between vehicles and pedestrians. A proper evacuation plan is required to guide the vehicles and pedestrians to safety in shortest time possible. A case study was conducted on an evacuation scenario at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE), which represents a general suburban University Campus. The evacuation model for SIUE was developed using a microsimulation traffic software, modeling both the vehicle and pedestrian volumes. The number of evacuees was calculated from the data obtained through SIUE parking services and Emergency Management. This study also used pedestrian evacuation demand forecasts for different crosswalks based on work from others. The VISSIM model was simulated by integrating both the pedestrian and vehicle volumes. Two different alternatives were proposed for improving the traffic conditions at SIUE during evacuation. The total clearance time for evacuation was found to be 3.5 hours. It was found from the simulation of three different scenarios that vehicle-pedestrian conflicts at the crosswalks did not have a significant effect on the overall evacuation period. The proposed alternative 1 had the most significant effect on the travel time along certain travel routes that included the North University Drive. Future works can be conducted on exit optimization and installing emergency traffic lights at the parking lot exits in order to facilitate faster clearance times.