Group Formation in Shared Spaces

Abstract. In shared spaces, grouped pedestrians can gain dominance and thus get the right of way from vehicles more easily; grouping can make traffic planning less complicated, e.g. it reduces the number of agents that need to be considered while traffic planning. However, grouping is not well investigated in shared spaces given the dynamic environment and interactions in mixed traffic. In this paper, we apply a dynamic facility location algorithm based on appearance time, origin, and destination of road users before crossing a junction to explore an appropriate grouping strategy in shared spaces, in order to improve the safety and efficiency of traffic.