This thesis investigated the management of electric vehicle battery charging in distribution networks. Different electric vehicle fleet sizes and network locations were considered. The energy storage capacity and backup generator’s energy requirements were calculated to achieve daily energy balance in a low voltage distribution network with micro-generation. The effect of the electric vehicle battery demand as controllable loads on the backup generator energy requirements was assessed. It was found that the use of electric vehicles as controllable loads reduced the energy requirements from the backup generator or made it unnecessary to achieve energy balance. Two control algorithms for the battery charging management of electric vehicles clustered in battery charging facilities were designed and developed. One algorithm calculates electric vehicle battery charging profiles for vehicles located in a parking space. Different charging policies were investigated, showing the ability of the control algorithm to define the electricity profile of the parking space according to network constraints and the policies’ objectives. The second algorithm calculates the number of batteries and chargers that are required to satisfy the battery demand of electric vehicle battery swapping stations. The impact of the number of chargers and batteries on the swapping station’s electricity load profile were evaluated. An agent-based control system was designed and developed for the battery charging management of electric vehicles dispersed in distribution networks. The electric vehicle battery charging schedules are calculated according to electricity prices and distribution network technical constraints. The real-time operation of the agent-based control system was demonstrated in the laboratory of TECNALIA’s research centre in Bilbao, Spain. A series of experiments showed the ability of the control system to operate and manage the electric vehicle battery charging when the distribution network is operated within its loading capacity and when the network technical limits are violated.

The electric vehicles (EVs) are emerging as an alternative solution to the conventional gasoline vehicles. The EV market faces different issues related to limited range, which are associated with the battery technology and the charging network. A clear emphasis is placed on how well the supporting recharging facilities (RFs) are deployed in order to reduce the limited range. The aim of this study is to investigate how suitably the locations for RFs can be chosen in order to satisfy the demand. Charging demand is a multifaceted problem, the majority of them charge at home and do not experience the maximum range of the EV in an attempt to avoid being stranded with a flat battery, and the deployment of rapid chargers is costly. A desired balance between supply and demand can be achieved by identifying the most influential factors affecting the design and use of the RFs. The fundamental monitoring of the use of RFs would reflect the quality of design, highlight the emerging design needs, and assist with the strategic deployment of the RFs. The interest in alternative transport is shaped primarily by consumer perceptions and users’ feedback. This thesis integrates visual and statistical elements in order to understand the end-­‐user emerging design needs and to model the RFs. In this thesis, over 12,725 charging events were analysed in conjunction to 20 interviews with EV users and stakeholders. With the use of an agent-­‐based modelling technique, it has been possible to capture and simulate the electric-­‐mobility system. By means of integrated spatiotemporal modelling, the results indicated that the proposed model is capable of identifying candidate locations for deploying RFs. A multi method approach is presented to understand the concepts of, model and design the RFs. The outcome of this research should be of interest to planning authorities and policy makers of alternative means of transport.

The next generation of vehicles will be equipped with automated Accident Warning Systems (AWSs) capable of warning neighbouring vehicles about hazards that might lead to accidents. The key enabling technology for these systems is the Vehicular Ad-hoc Networks (VANET) but the dynamics of such networks make the crucial timely delivery of warning messages challenging. While most previously attempted implementations have used broadcast-based data dissemination schemes, these do not cope well as data traffic load or network density increases. This problem of sending warning messages in a timely manner is addressed by employing a network coding technique in this thesis. The proposed NETwork COded DissEmination (NETCODE) is a VANET-based AWS responsible for generating and sending warnings to the vehicles on the road. NETCODE offers an XOR-based data dissemination scheme that sends multiple warning in a single transmission and therefore, reduces the total number of transmissions required to send the same number of warnings that broadcast schemes send. Hence, it reduces contention and collisions in the network improving the delivery time of the warnings. The first part of this research (Chapters 3 and 4) asserts that in order to build a warning system, it is needful to ascertain the system requirements, information to be exchanged, and protocols best suited for communication between vehicles. Therefore, a study of these factors along with a review of existing proposals identifying their strength and weakness is carried out. Then an analysis of existing broadcast-based warning is conducted which concludes that although this is the most straightforward scheme, loading can result an effective collapse, resulting in unacceptably long transmission delays. The second part of this research (Chapter 5) proposes the NETCODE design, including the main contribution of this thesis, a pair of encoding and decoding algorithms that makes the use of an XOR-based technique to reduce transmission overheads and thus allows warnings to get delivered in time. The final part of this research (Chapters 6--8) evaluates the performance of the proposed scheme as to how it reduces the number of transmissions in the network in response to growing data traffic load and network density and investigates its capacity to detect potential accidents. The evaluations use a custom-built simulator to model real-world scenarios such as city areas, junctions, roundabouts, motorways and so on. The study shows that the reduction in the number of transmissions helps reduce competition in the network significantly and this allows vehicles to deliver warning messages more rapidly to their neighbours. It also examines the relative performance of NETCODE when handling both sudden event-driven and longer-term periodic messages in diverse scenarios under stress caused by increasing numbers of vehicles and transmissions per vehicle. This work confirms the thesis' primary contention that XOR-based network coding provides a potential solution on which a more efficient AWS data dissemination scheme can be built.

Vehicular Ad hoc Networks (VANETs) are a particular form of wireless network made by vehicles communicating among themselves and with roadside base stations. A wide range of services has been developed for VANETs ranging from safety to infotainment applications. A key requirement for such services is that they are offered with Quality of Service (QoS) guarantees in terms of service reliability and availability. Furthermore, due to the openness of VANET’s wireless channels to both internal and external attacks, the application of security mechanisms is mandatory to protect the offered QoS guarantees. QoS routing plays an essential role in identifying routes that meet the QoS requirements of the offered service over VANETs. However, searching for feasible routes subject to multiple QoS constraints is in general an NP-hard problem. Moreover, routing reliability needs to be given special attention as communication links frequently break in VANETs. To date, most existing QoS routing algorithms are designed for stable networks without considering the security of the routing process. Therefore, they are not suitable for applications in VANETs. In this thesis, the above issues are addressed firstly by developing a link reliability model based on the topological and mathematical properties of vehicular movements and velocities. Evolving graph theory is then utilised to model the VANET communication graph and integrate the developed link reliability model into it. Based on the resulting extended evolving graph model, the most reliable route in the network is picked. Secondly, the situational awareness model is applied to the developed reliable routing process because picking the most reliable route does not guarantee reliable transmission. Therefore, a situation-aware reliable multipath routing algorithm for VANETs is proposed. Thirdly, the Ant Colony Optimisation (ACO) technique is employed to propose an Ant-based multi-constrained QoS (AMCQ) routing algorithm for VANETs. AMCQ is designed to give significant advantages to the implementation of security mechanisms that are intended to protect the QoS routing process. Finally, a novel set of security procedures is proposed to defend the routing process against external and internal threats. Simulation results demonstrate that high levels of QoS can be still guaranteed by AMCQ even when the security procedures are applied.

Vehicular Ad hoc NETworks (VANETs), an emerging technology, use vehicles as nodes to form a mobile ad hoc network for the dissemination of safety and entertainment messages. The thesis provides a scheme for the fast propagation of messages in VANETs and evaluates the impact of vehicles as obstacles on signal propagation. An improved scheme for intermediate node selection in DBA-MAC (Dynamic Backbone Assisted MAC) is proposed, which consists of a CW (Contention Window) constraint scheme and an updated criterion of suitability. A performance comparison shows that messages in the proposed scheme propagate faster than in DBA-MAC. The CW constraint scheme is also applicable in VANET protocols which adapt the CW mechanism to communicate the suitability of vehicles for acting as intermediate nodes. Additionally, the mathematical models for DBAMAC and the proposal are established, which indicate the probability of candidates to be chosen over alternatives in the intermediate node selection. A novel metric - delay taking into account the effect of formation time(DEFT) - is proposed. DEFT combines the network formation time and propagation delay. It shows the impact of network formation on propagation latency. The configuration for optimal performance can be acquired using the proposed DEFT. In order to evaluate the proposals, a novel distribution of vehicle location is proposed. In the proposed distribution, the security distances between adjacent vehicles in the same lane are considered. The estimation of vehicles’ location can be more practical and accurate using the proposed distribution. In the wide body of the VANET literature, it is assumed that all the vehicles within the radio range of a transmitter are able to receive the signal. Yet, in practice, the vehicles as obstacles between the transmitter and the receiver affect the signal propagation significantly. This thesis presents the impact of these obstacles on the network connectivity and system performance of the protocols. The results and the analysis show that neglecting obstacles in practice leads to a significant degree of error in the estimation of system performance. In practice, tall vehicles forward messages in a more efficient way than do lower vehicles since they are free from the obstacle effect. An improved scheme is proposed, in which the height of vehicles is used as a factor to determine their suitability for message forwarding.

Airport road access wayfinding refers to a process in which a driver makes a decision to navigate using information support systems in order to arrive to airport successfully. The purpose of this research is to evaluate senior drivers’ behaviour of alternative airport road access designs. In order to evaluate the impact of wayfinding, the combination of simulated driving and completion of a questionnaire were performed. Quantitative data was acquired to give significant results justifying the research outcomes and allow non-biased interpretation of the research results. It represents the process within the development of the methodology and the concept of airport road access design and driving behaviour. Wayfinding complexity varied due to differing levels of road-side furniture. The simulated driving parameters measured were driving mistakes and performances of senior drivers. Three types of driving scenarios were designed consisting of 3.8 miles of airport road access. 40 senior drivers volunteered to undertake these tasks. The questionnaire was used as a supporting study to increase the reliability and validity of the research. Respondents who volunteered for the simulated driving test were encouraged to participate in the questionnaire sessions. The questionnaire was answered after each simulation test was completed. The Mean, Standard Deviation (SD) and Two-Way ANOVA test were used to analyse the results and discussed with reference to the use of the driving simulation. The results confirmed that age group has no significant effect of airport road access complexity design on driving behaviour. Although many studies have been conducted on wayfinding in general, a detailed evaluation on airport road access wayfinding network and driving behaviour in respect of senior drivers were still unexplored domains.

Although the environmental imperative compels us to search for a low carbon system of mobility, contemporary society seemingly necessitates a low carbon automobility. The costs and impracticalities of low carbon vehicles are well documented, and although the cultural and semiotic nature of the car means that it has always been more than just a means of transport, less is known about how socio-cultural mores regarding the car might impact upon the transition to low carbon motoring. Because cars carry people, then they inevitably carry experiences and meanings too. However, a shift from conventional internal combustion-engined vehicles to more low carbon forms of propulsion, such as electric or hybrid vehicles, suggests that the nature – et ergo our experiences and perceptions – of the car will necessarily change. It is therefore desirable to investigate the contemporary ‘consumption’ of the car, not only as personal transport but also as status symbol, cultural artefact and experience, to assess how such a socio-cultural consumption might apply to low carbon vehicles and so ascertain the subsequent potential for a holistic low carbon automobility as part of a sustainable transport policy. A suite of methods was employed to investigate if or how contemporary automobilities can aspire to a low carbon automobility, or whether the everyday socio-cultural ‘consumption’ of the car might preclude a transition to low carbon vehicles. The notions of affect and/or non-representational theory were appropriated as a philosophical framework to look beyond a seemingly default postmodern ‘car-as-representation’ approach to the consumption of the car and so begin to explore a deeper, perhaps even subconscious, regard for the car. In addition, opinion was sought from stakeholders within the low carbon vehicle sector as to the technologies within, the prospects for, and the efficacy of, UK low carbon vehicle policy and its facilitation thereon, and also with a sample of EV drivers as to their experiences of electric cars. Responses to an initial online questionnaire appeared to deny any status or regard for the car beyond its utility. However, subsequent semi-structured interviews with motorists conducted (mostly) in their cars contradicted these findings, with a variety of expressed feelings – pride, empowerment, fortune – suggesting a deeper, subconscious regard for, reading of, and connection with, the car than is immediately apparent. Similarly, the utility of the electric car was transcended, this time by feelings of ‘greenness’ and ‘calm’ expressed by EV drivers. A stated amenability and aspiration by those interviewed for low carbon vehicles contrasted with an aspiration for sporty and prestige cars, suggesting an ingrained or innate idea as to what constitutes a truly desirable car. The more cultural facets of the car explored during focus group discussions established a connection between a car’s cultural representation and its meaning. Interviews with low carbon vehicle stakeholders suggest that while UK low carbon vehicle policy is broadly effective, is not as efficacious as it could be, in that itinerate market-led aspirations lack the fixity and certainty, in terms of both infrastructure and policy, that investors and consumers require, especially given a high entry price, the promise of lower running costs notwithstanding. In establishing where ‘here’ is regarding the consumption of the car and the implementation of a low carbon vehicle policy, this research provides a new perspective upon the appetite and potential for a transition to a future low carbon automobility, and shows the efficacy of appropriating the notions of affect and non-representational theory to a more holistic consumption of the car.

For decades, vehicle time-headway distribution models have been studied by many researchers and traffic engineers. A good time-headway model can be beneficial to traffic studies and management in many aspects; e.g. with a better understanding of road traffic patterns and road user behaviour, the researchers or engineers can give better estimations and predictions under certain road traffic conditions and hence make better decisions on traffic management and control. The models also help us to implement high-quality microscopic traffic simulation studies to seek good solutions to traffic problems with minimal interruption of the real traffic environment and minimum costs. Compared within previously studied models, the mixed (SPM and GQM) mod- els, especially using the gamma or lognormal distributions to describe followers headways, are probably the most recognized ones by researchers in statistical stud- ies of headway data. These mixed models are reported with good fitting results indicated by goodness-of-fit tests, and some of them are better than others in com- putational costs. The gamma-SPM and gamma-GQM models are often reported to have similar fitting qualities, and they often out-perform the lognormal-GQM model in terms of computational costs. A lognormal-SPM model cannot be formed analytically as no explicit Laplace transform is available with the lognormal dis- tribution. The major downsides of using mixed models are the difficulties and more flexibilities in fitting process as they have more parameters than those single models, and this sometimes leads to unsuccessful fitting or unreasonable fitted pa- rameters despite their success in passing GoF tests. Furthermore, it is difficult to know the connections between model parameters and realistic traffic situations or environments, and these parameters have to be estimated using headway samples. Hence, it is almost impossible to explain any traffic phenomena with the param- eters of a model. Moreover, with the gamma distribution as the only common well-known followers headway model, it is hard to justify whether it has described the headway process appropriately. This creates a barrier for better understanding the process of how drivers would follow their preceding vehicles. This study firstly proposes a framework developed using MATLAB, which would help researchers in quick implementations of any headway distributions of interest. This framework uses common methods to manage and prepare headway samples to meet those requirements in data analysis. It also provides common structures and methods on implementing existing or new models, fitting models, testing their performance hence reporting results. This will simplify the development work involved in headway analysis, avoid unnecessary repetitions of work done by others and provide results in formats that are more comparable with those reported by others. Secondly, this study focuses on the implementation of existing mixed models, i.e. the gamma-SPM, gamma-GQM and lognormal-GQM, using the proposed framework. The lognormal-SPM is also tested for the first time, with the recently developed approximation method of Laplace transform available for lognormal distributions. The parameters of these mixed models are specially discussed, as means of restrictions to simplify the fitting process of these models. Three ways of parameter pre-determinations are attempted over gamma-SPM and gamma-GQM models. A couple of response-time (RT) distributions are focused on in the later part of this study. Two RT models, i.e. Ex-Gaussian (EMG) and inverse Gaussian (IVG) are used, for first time, as single models to describe headway data. The fitting performances are greatly comparable to the best known lognormal single model. Further extending this work, these two models are tested as followers headway distributions in both SPM and GQM mixed models. The test results have shown excellent fitting performance. These now bring researchers more alternatives to use mixed models in headway analysis, and this will help to compare the be- haviours of different models when they are used to describe followers headway data. Again, similar parameter restrictions are attempted for these new mixed models, and the results show well-acceptable performance, and also corrections on some unreasonable fittings caused by the over flexibilities using 4- or 5- parameter models.

Comment peut-on expliquer que le « stress » devienne une réalité pour les routiers alors qu’ils sont traditionnellement contraints à l’effort physique, et dans quelle mesure est-il sociologiquement organisé ? La gestion de flux en temps réel et la transformation en métier de service amène de nouvelles contraintes dont le stress en est son émanation sociale. Mon enquête se découpe en trois parties. La première vise à présenter le secteur et à montrer les points de tension qui se manifestent à l’échelle économique et macrosociologique. En seconde partie, j’aborde l’histoire du transport routier de marchandises dans son développement pendant les lois de coordination des transports jusqu’à aujourd’hui. Enfin, en troisième je rends compte des observations directes issues des voyages en cabine de conduite et des lieux de socialisation des routiers et je présente enfin une construction idéale-typique du stress en m’appuyant sur le rapport qu’ont les routiers envers les prescriptions et des marges de manoeuvre qu’ils mobilisent. / How can we explain that stress becomes a fact for long-distance truck drivers while they are tradionally forced to physical efforts ? Moreover, to what extend stress is it socialy organized ? Long-distance truck drivers’ work is the object of some complex prescriptions in an open world, in which its transformation from worker to a service job brings new contraints. Among them, stress is gradually imperative. I hope to see how this process enfolds. My investigation stands (out) in three parts. The first one presents the sector of french road freight. My goal is to show some points of tensions in the economic and macrosociological scales. In the second part, I’ll focus on the history of road transport through its development during the French coordination laws until today by following the institutional transformations of regulations and competition in European Union. Then, we shall analyse how stress spreads through our ideal-typical construction.

Prolonged time sitting has been linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVD), cardiovascular mortality (CVM), all-cause mortality, diabetes and some cancers. Workers in occupations where there is no alternative to sitting can best be defined as compulsory sedentary workers , which involve bus and lorry drivers amongst others. Limited research is available on the health behaviours and health profiles of individuals working within these occupations. This thesis adopts a mixed methods approach and fits within the MRC framework for the development of complex interventions to specifically investigate bus and lorry drivers sedentary behaviours and physical activity levels in association with their cardiovascular health. Chapter 3 describes a pilot study, which results showed bus drivers accumulate 12 hours sitting on workdays and presented higher than the recommended ranges for BMI, body fat, waist circumference and blood pressure. Chapter 4 explores the validity of using an ActiGraph accelerometer compared to the activPAL to assess bus drivers sedentary behaviours. Results highlight that compared to the activPAL, the ActiGraph underestimates sedentary time during workdays (151minutes/day) and working hours (172min/day). Chapter 5 phenotypes UK lorry drivers sedentary behaviours and non-sedentary behaviours during workdays and non-workdays and examines lorry drivers markers of cardiovascular health. Lorry drivers accumulate 13 hours sitting on workdays and 8 hours on non-workdays and presented an ill-cardiovascular profile. Chapter 6 examines the effects of an intervention designed to promote PA and reduce sedentary time on a range of cardiovascular risk factors in a sample of lorry drivers. Chapter 7 presents a process evaluation of the Structured Health Intervention for Truckers (SHIFT) programme described in Chapter 6. This thesis highlights that bus and lorry drivers accumulate the highest amount of sitting time reported up to date, together with high levels of physical inactivity and an ill-cardiovascular profile. However, positive changes in cardiovascular risk factors were observed when drivers increased their daily average of step counts. Overall, these results emphasise that targeting bus and lorry drivers health behaviours should be a public health priority.