Agent-Based Simulation of Metropolitan Area Evacuation by Unmanned Air Mobility

Abstract

Researchers have proposed a portfolio of autonomous transportation systems for metropolitan areas including Urban Air Mobility (UAM) systems. Urban Air Mobility systems consist of low occupant battery operated helicopters, similar to drones. In a future state, when Urban Air Mobility is a ubiquitous transportation option, urban planners will need to understand the potential role of the Urban Air Mobility system for an efficient evacuation of a metropolitan area. An agent-based model is used to assess the evacuation efficiency as throughput and time to complete. The agent-based model includes autonomous Urban Air Mobility systems operating in an urban environment on routes defined by existing city streets and originating at a central location that may be on the ground or on the top of a building. In the event of an evacuation, the routing of each Urban Air Mobility unit is determined by a central air traffic flow management system to maximize the evacuation throughput. Standard deviation of time-to-complete is computing to understand where the model shows convergence. The implications of the results and limitations of the model are discussed.