Article: A DMAIC-based methodology for improving urban traffic quality with application for city of Montreal Journal: International Journal of Six Sigma and Competitive Advantage (IJSSCA) 2016 Vol.10 No.1 pp.24 - 49 Abstract: Traffic congestion is a severe problem in cities. Drivers spend hours going through the traffic. This results not only in driver fatigue but also vehicular emissions, noise and pollutants into the environment. Controlling the situation of congestion in cities is of vital importance to city transport organisations and traffic decision-makers. In this paper, we propose a DMAIC-based methodology for improving the quality of urban traffic. The proposed methodology comprises of three steps. In Step 1, we conduct a survey study to collect traffic congestion data in the city. In Step 2, DMAIC methodology is applied to analyse the survey data collected from Step 1. The techniques used are Descriptive statistics, Pareto analysis, Cause-Effect Diagram, Factor Analysis, and Control Charts (Individual and Multivariate). In the third step, we generate recommendations for reducing traffic congestion and ameliorating transportation service quality in cities based on results of Steps 1 and 2. The proposed work is novel and has practical applicability in managing the situation of traffic congestion in cities. An application of the proposed approach for city of Montreal is provided. Inderscience Publishers - linking academia, business and industry through research

Title: A DMAIC-based methodology for improving urban traffic quality with application for city of Montreal

Authors: Zhong Hua Zhang; Anjali Awasthi

Addresses: CIISE-Quality Systems Engineering, Concordia University, Montreal H3G 2W1, Canada ' CIISE-Quality Systems Engineering, Concordia University, Montreal H3G 2W1, Canada

Abstract: Traffic congestion is a severe problem in cities. Drivers spend hours going through the traffic. This results not only in driver fatigue but also vehicular emissions, noise and pollutants into the environment. Controlling the situation of congestion in cities is of vital importance to city transport organisations and traffic decision-makers. In this paper, we propose a DMAIC-based methodology for improving the quality of urban traffic. The proposed methodology comprises of three steps. In Step 1, we conduct a survey study to collect traffic congestion data in the city. In Step 2, DMAIC methodology is applied to analyse the survey data collected from Step 1. The techniques used are Descriptive statistics, Pareto analysis, Cause-Effect Diagram, Factor Analysis, and Control Charts (Individual and Multivariate). In the third step, we generate recommendations for reducing traffic congestion and ameliorating transportation service quality in cities based on results of Steps 1 and 2. The proposed work is novel and has practical applicability in managing the situation of traffic congestion in cities. An application of the proposed approach for city of Montreal is provided.

Keywords: traffic congestion; DMAIC; critical to quality; factor analysis; cause and effect diagram; control charts; six sigma; urban traffic; cities; Montreal; descriptive statistics; Pareto analysis; transport service quality; Canada; traffic jams.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSSCA.2016.080449

International Journal of Six Sigma and Competitive Advantage, 2016 Vol.10 No.1, pp.24 - 49

Received: 20 Nov 2015
Accepted: 16 May 2016
Published online: 23 Nov 2016 *

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Title: A DMAIC-based methodology for improving urban traffic quality with application for city of Montreal

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