UC Irvine Institute of Transportation Studies

This report is a preliminary evaluation of the CALTRANS transportation system management program implemented during the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics. It discusses the objectives and strategies of the CALTRANS TSM program. describes highway system performance during the Olympics, and presents tentative conclusions regarding the overall success of the TSM program.

Results indicate that response to the Olympics was highly varied both in time and space. During the Olympics period. travel volumes were highly variable, starting out much below normal levels and gradually increasing. The most significant travel adjustments took place in the vicinity of the Los Angeles downtown/Coliseum area. In this area both traffic volumes and truck volumes remained low throughout the Olympics. The data also indicated a consistent drop in work trip travel of about 10 percent. a shift in truck traffic to evening hours, and a reduction in traffic incidents throughout Los Angeles County. It is concluded that the combination of these relatively minor changes. together with more intensive than normal traffic management, were responsible for the efficient flow of traffic during the Olympics.