Experimental study on pedestrian evacuation characteristics through building bottleneck group structure

In this work, a series of controlled experiments with 119 participants were performed to study pedestrian evacuation behaviors through the bottleneck group structure consisting of two serially-connected bottlenecks. The impacts of bottleneck distance and width on pedestrian spatiotemporal features including density profiles, waiting time and time headway were analyzed. Results highlight that: 1) the first bottleneck is more significant in shaping the pedestrian flow since the crowd at the second bottleneck is a consequence of the diversion caused by the first bottleneck; 2) a funnel-shaped bottleneck group structure design could improve the overall efficiency; 3) the findings from previous single bottleneck studies may be inapplicable to individual bottleneck within the bottleneck group. Then this study quantitatively investigates the impact of bottleneck width and distance on spatiotemporal characteristics through model fitting analysis. This work provides reliable data and a scientific framework to guide bottleneck group design in buildings. • Evacuation experiments with 119 participants are carried out. • Pedestrian spatiotemporal features in bottleneck group structure are analyzed. • Interaction of bottlenecks in bottleneck group structure on evacuation is revealed. • Applicability of single-bottleneck conclusions to bottleneck group is discussed. • The first bottleneck should be the focal point of bottleneck group management.