Urban Transportation Networks Review
Urban Transportation Networks by Yossi Sheffi is a classic on modeling and solving equilibrium and design problems in transport systems. It turns travel behavior and congestion into optimization models you can analyze and compute. The tone is rigorous and practical.
Overview
Core topics: demand modeling, shortest paths, user equilibrium and system optimum, traffic assignment algorithms, sensitivity analysis, and network design (capacity expansion, tolls). The book links mathematical programming to real planning questions.
Summary
Sheffi formalizes Wardrop principles, derives variational inequalities and convex programs for equilibrium, and develops algorithms for single- and multi-class assignment. He covers elastic demand, reliability, and design under budget constraints. Worked examples and computational guidance make the theory usable.
Authors
Yossi Sheffi is an engineer and operations researcher known for clear exposition at the intersection of transportation and optimization.
Key Themes
Behavioral assumptions drive models; equilibrium vs optimum; duality and sensitivity as policy tools; tractable approximations for large networks.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths: clean derivations, algorithmic recipes, and durable foundations. Weaknesses: limited coverage of modern dynamic simulation and real-time control; examples reflect earlier data environments. Pair with DTA/MPC texts for contemporary deployments.
Target Audience
Graduate students, analysts, and practitioners who need a solid base in network equilibrium and design.
Favorite Ideas
Linking Wardrop to convex optimization; sensitivity analysis for policy; bilevel formulations for network design and tolling.
Takeaways
Model choices matter. Use equilibrium when predicting behavior, system optimum for control, and validate with observed flows. Optimization gives policy levers and limits.
