Relationships and Characteristics of Self-Organized Vehicle Groups and Other Remaining Vehicles in Disordered Heterogeneous Traffic

This study examines the relationships between self-organized vehicle groups and remaining vehicles (referred to as "remains") within heterogeneous, disordered traffic flows, and compares their characteristics. The findings reveal that leader–follower relationships are less prevalent among the remains, whereas connections with grouped vehicles are more frequent in both groups and remains. Additionally, groups form longer leader-follower networks with diverse pathways for the propagation of acceleration and deceleration waves. Furthermore, the results suggest that a typical vehicle platoon comprises a sparse distribution of remains interspersed around longer groups. Moreover, owing to their extended network lengths and varied densities, groups are likely to feature amplified acceleration and deceleration waves. The findings also suggest that some remains may gradually disperse, hindering the backward propagation of waves. Thus, this study provides novel insights into the formation and dynamics of groups and remains in disordered traffic, with the aim of enhancing traffic-flow modeling.