Heterogeneous Graph Neural Networks for Data-driven Traffic Assignment

The traffic assignment problem is one of the significant components of traffic flow analysis for which various solution approaches have been proposed. However, deploying these approaches for large-scale networks poses significant challenges. In this paper, we leverage the power of heterogeneous graph neural networks to propose a novel data-driven approach for traffic assignment and traffic flow learning. The proposed model is capable of capturing spatial traffic patterns across different links, yielding highly accurate results. We present numerical experiments on urban transportation networks and show that the proposed heterogeneous graph neural network model outperforms other conventional neural network models in terms of convergence rate, training loss, and prediction accuracy. Notably, the proposed heterogeneous graph neural network model can also be generalized to different network topologies. This approach offers a promising solution for complex traffic flow analysis and prediction, enhancing our understanding and management of a wide range of transportation systems.