Ramp Metering controls the rates that vehicles can enter a highway via a traffic signal located near the end of the entrance ramp. The intent of Ramp Metering is two-fold: first, to utilize storage space provided by the ramp to provide priority movement to vehicles passing by the interchange; and secondly, to enhance safety by smoothing out the rate at which vehicles merge into mainline traffic, leading to less stop-and-start driving.
Ramp metering has been successfully employed along I-476 in Delaware and Montgomery County for several years, as well as in many U.S. cities, such as Chicago, Illinois; Los Angeles, California; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Phoenix, Arizona; and Seattle, Washington.
