Last Revised:  11/8/2009

QRS II Version 8 Planning

Planning is underway for QRS II Version 8.  Release of version 8 will await the availability of a 64-bit compiler, sometime after Summer 2009.   Here are some new or changed features that are likely to be contained in Version 8.

• QRS II will go to parallel processing for most of its time-intensive tasks.  That is, QRS II will use all the processors in a multicore machine.  Performance improvements vary depending upon the application, but most users will experience dramatic reductions in computation time.
• Users can supply a district-to-district OD table and disaggregation factors instead of an AddVTrips.txt files for static traffic assignments.
• QRS II has a new method of OD table disaggregation that depends upon ground counts.  It works similarly to Fratar biproportional refinement, however the user only supplies a district-to-district OD table, with QRS II finding the zone-to-zone OD table.
• It will be possible to give QRS II additional constant clock times on links, which is similar to the extra times.
• The maximum number of vehicle classes has been increased to 10.
• The maximum trip length has been increased to 7200 minutes.  The MaxAssignTime and MinAssignTime parameters have been eliminated.
• Improvements have been made in the convergence of the Entropy Maximization technique for OD table refinement.  The EntropyDamping parameter has been eliminated.
• The number of pollutants (or environmental indices) has been increased to 10 and it is possible to give custom name the pollutants.
• A new experimental OD table refinement method, dubbed "least squares mulitproportional", has been added.  This method has results that resemble entropy maximization, but it it possible to closely control the amount of distortion in the OD table.
• All the refinement methods have been enhanced for greater speed of convergence.
• It is possible to select individual OD cells to be refined.

QRS II and GNE in Windows Vista

QRS II Memory Limit

GNE 8 New Features

GNE 8 is was released on September 10, 2007.  Here is a list of new features.

1. Nodes can be shown on networks as pie charts.  Pie slices can be apportioned according to node attributes or controlled by node size expressions.
2. Nodes and shape point locations can be recorded in longitude and latitude.  GNE has the ability to convert x, y to long, lat and the ability to convert long, lat to x, y.  Three map projection methods are available (Lambert, transverse Mercator, and linear/cosine), both direct and inverse.  In addition, it is possible to set longitude and latitude using statistical interpolation from surrounding nodes and shape points.  Longitude and latitude are preserved to 1 ten-millionths of a degree (about 1 cm of physical distance.)  Longitude and latitude can be used in node size expressions, Calculate, Extract and Update.
3. GNE provides a place to enter the elevation of nodes and shape points.  Elevation can be used in node size expressions, Calculate, Extract and Update.  Elevations are preserved from shapefiles, should the shapefiles contain elevations.  GNE can calculate node and shape point elevations by a method called Delaunay Triangulation.  It is also possible to interpolate shape point elevations from the elevations at either end of its link.  Elevations can be set network-wide or at individual nodes and shape points.
   
4. Nodes and links can have text attributes.  Text can be used in expressions and in Calculate, extracted and updated.
5. GNE can animate node size and link expressions that may change over time, say from the results of a dynamic traffic assignment.
6. Enhancements have been made for polygon handling.
• It is possible to determine if a polygon is clockwise or counter-clockwise.
• The direction of the polygon may be reversed at will.
• A node's or shape point's order in any given polygon chain is readily available.
• Calculate has a two new commands, CCLK and CLKW, which will change the orientation of a polygon.
• GNE automatically calculates and presents the distance a vertex is from the first node in a polygon.
• The direction of a polygon is available as a node property in expressions.
• A new Sketch Pad mode allows the transfer of one owner nodes's polygon to another node.
  
7. GNE can write shapefiles consistent with ESRI (ArcGIS) standards.  Extract's ability to write dbf files is synchronized with the routines to write shp and shx files, to form a complete GIS database.  GNE shapefiles use longitude and latitude for object's location.  The set of elements in shapefiles can be modified by searches and layers, so shapefiles can be highly customized to a particular need.   GNE sends nodes to pointz files; links to polylinez files, and polygons to polygonz files.  This feature gives GNE a convenient interface with many GIS products.
8. GNE has a GIS-like buffering tool.  Called the Polygon Coverage Tool, GNE can calculate the spatial coverage of a buffer across many polygons within a network.  GNE then adds up one characteristic or a combination of characteristics across all polygons that are covered or partially covered.  Partially covered polygons are only partially counted in the total.  For example, it would be possible to find the total number of dwelling units in a subregion, regardless of whether the subregion boundaries closely match the boundaries of the TAZs or census tracts (polygons).  Five types of buffers are possible:  polygon, circle, link pearls, link blunt, and link sausage.  A polygon buffer is appropriate when the region can be defined precisely.  A circle buffer forms a circular region around a single node.  A link pearls buffer forms a string of circular buffers around each shape point and each ending node of a link.  A link sausage or blunt buffer forms a region within a fixed distance of  a link.  The buffer's extent across the network can be seen visually on the network as the buffer is analyzed.  Buffers can be drawn around a specific link or node or buffers can involve a combination of nodes or a combination of links.
9. Many improvements have been made to the user interface.
10. GNE has dialog boxes that extensively list node properties and link properties.  Properties are attributes of nodes and links that cannot be directly set, such as link length, but are a consquence of their relationship to other elements on the network.  The Properties dialog box, at the user's discretion, can display very detailed information about the nestedness or other interactions of an element with respect to the rest of the network.  Reported informaiton  includes: polygons that contain a specific node or link, polygons that intersect a given polygon, polygons that are adjacent to a specific polygon, and nodes or links within a specifc polygon.
11. GNE reports a shape point's position within a link. GNE automatically calculates and reports the distance a shape point is from the A-node of a link. 
12. There is a new Shape Open Sketch Pad mode.  It is possible to open a link by going through any one of its shape points.
    
13. Mark Shortest Paths can be given a maximum distance.  The tool can not be used to find all network elements within a specified travel distance or impedance from a specific node.  Any number of starting nodes may be entered, so it is also possible to find all network elements within a specified travel distance of multiple nodes.
14. GNE reports link lengths, polygon perimeters, and polygon areas in standard units (e.g., miles or meters, instead of pixels), at the uses's option.
15. Searches can include or exclude entities without attributes.
16. Links displayed with two widths (Width:Width) can now be displayed with two widths and a color using three link expressions.
17. The node size style Polygon:Size has been extented to allow a third expression to control node color.
18. Expressions can have a new function RAND, which is a random number generator.  There are two new operators: "d" is the integer divide operator and "m" is the modulo operator.
19. GNE can display desire lines, which can be supplied to GNE in a text file in the same format as AddVTrips.txt.  Desire lines are displayed using expressions and link width intervals.
20. GNE can help create good label offsets for links that are not straight due to shape points.
    

GNE Version 8, Maintenance Releases

Release 8.0.2.  Fixed a problem with the mark shortest path feature that caused GNE to sometimes fail to see a starting node.

Release 8.1.0.  Added the ability to easily replace text strings in link or node names.

Release 8.1.1  Fixed a bug that caused a crash if Initialize Clear was selected.  Fixed a problem that sometimes prevented Append from working correctly.

QRS II Version 7, Maintenance Releases

Release 7.1.3.  Eliminated a bug that caused QRS II to rarely crash when reading AddETime files.   Removed a problem that caused problems reading TRates files for multiclass/dynamic traffic assignments.

Release 7.1.4.  Removed a bug that sometimes prevented dynamic assignments with more than 24 intervals.

Release 7.1.5.  Eliminated a conflict between AddPenalty.txt and LeftPenalty1.tmp that could cause a crash.  Fixed a problem that prevented Result.dta from being readable if the original network file was created with GNE 8.

QRS II Version 7, New Features

1. QRS II will run equilibrium dynamic traffic assignments.  Traffic may be assigned in up to 255 time slices of as few as 1 minutes each.  Reports are provided for each time slice as well as all traffic within a designated reporting period.  Either static and dynamic (forward-looking) path building can be selected.
2. QRS II will allow much larger numbers of nodes and links in its biggest editions; each was previously limited to 32000.  The largest edition of QRS II can accommodate the biggest travel forecasting networks known to exist in the United States.
3. Results of select link analysis are inserted into a network file, Select.dta, which has similar information as Selvols.txt.
4. QRS II can be told to "refine" a highway trip table to match ground counts, thereby creating a file called AddRTrips.txt that can be "added" by QRS II or inspected by the user as part of the calibration process.  Five refinement methods are available:  entropy maximization, generalized least squares (GLS), biproportional least squares, uniproportional least squares and single-factor least squares.  The biproportional least squares method finds a set of Fratar factors of a given OD matrix that best fits ground counts.  Uniproportional least squares finds a single expansion factor for each zone that best fits ground counts.  All methods are compatible with QRS II's elastic-demand equilibrium assignment method.  A byproduct of the refinement is a file equivalent to Select.txt containing the select link information for all links with ground counts.
5. QRS II can be told to "refine" a time series of highway origin-destination tables that would be input to a dynamic equilibrium traffic assignment.  There are three possible refinement methods:  biproportional least squares, whole trip table least squares, and single-factor least squares.  This type of refinement is most applicable to statewide models where trips are long and the time-of-day distribution on links would not necessarily match the time-of-day distribution of origins.  The method can also be used for freeway corridor studies where there are good link data for time intervals of less than one hour.
6. QRS II now writes its full "history" to a file for later reference.
7. Explicit roundabout approaches have been added to the someway stop routines.  It is possible to designate 1-lane or 2-lane roundabouts that behave differently from yield signs and properly account for the uneven lane distribution in circulating flow.
8. QRS II will create a report, Movements.txt, which gives the right, left, and through movements for all intersection approaches at traffic controlled intersections.
9. Results of a select zone analysis are inserted into a network file, Selzones.dta, which has similar information as SelZones.txt.
10. Extra link times may be given to QRS II by way of an AddETime.txt file.
11. QRS II can perform multiclass traffic assignment.  Users are allowed to define up to 5 vehicle classes and track those classes through the assignment process.  Classes can have different "extra times" on links.  Class OD tables are given to QRS II through the AddVTrips.txt file.
12. Frank-Wolfe decomposition has been deactivated (confusing and obsolete).
13. There are now 7 additional user-definable functional classes.
14. There are optional acceleration rates for heavy vehicles.
15. Confirmed that the 2000 HCM procedures are identical to those implemented in QRS II based on the 1997 manual.  Updated all reference to the 2000 HCM.  Added the ability to have double exclusive right lanes.
16. Many minor improvements to the user interface.
17. Individual turn penalties may be placed on the network with an AddPenalty.txt file, which has the same format as AddBase.txt.
18. QRS II can have separate delays for left turning vehicles from exclusive lanes at all types of traffic controlled intersections.
19. Capacities and saturation flow rates can be varied throughout a dynamic traffic assignment by using an AddCapacity.txt file.
20. Signal timing can  vary throughout dynamic traffic assignment by using an AddTiming.txt file.
21. New sample networks are provided (along with supporting parameter and "add" files to illustrate OD table refinement, dynamic traffic assignment and multiclass traffic assignment.
    
    

GNE 7 Maintenance Releases

Release 7.0.2 accommodates networks that have had links removed outside of GNE, where those links had shape points that served as polygon vertices.  This change was necessary for GNE to read some skim tree files that are produced by QRS II.

Release 7.0.3 fixes a problem with node merge that could cause the same vertex node to appear twice in a polygon.

Release 7.0.4 fixes a bug that prevented extracting link and node names to dbf files.

Release 7.0.6 fixes a bug that kept node merge from working when merging a node to shape point and the node was a polygon vertex.  Fixed a problem that unnecessarily increased the size of network files.

Release 7.0.7 fixes a bug that prevented Calculate from moving nodes to new layers.

Release 7.0.8 fixes a bug that caused arrows to improperly appear on some links.  It fixes a bug that caused the Set Search for Mark feature on Mark Shortest Paths to sometimes work improperly.  Also fixed was a bug that caused GNE to sometimes fail to reinitialize the  file name for a new schema.  This release allows users to extract the first and second lines of "notes" by using the codes ")" and "(", respectively.

Release 7.0.9 fixes a bug that allowed GNE to consider deleted links when marking shortest paths.

Release 7.0.10 fixes a bug that caused multiple problems when clear entity labels was selected.  Also fixed several nuisance problems with Sketch Pad operations.

The latest GNE executable may be downloaded from the Resources page.  Be aware that this executable will not run without other files that are shipped with GNE 7.  This executable should be copied over the existing GNEwin.exe on your hard drive.  This executable must not be copied over earlier versions of GNE.
 

GNE 7 New Features

1. It is possible to enter random text into nodes and links.  This text can be used to document the condition or history of node or link data that is not apparent from the attribute values or the name.  This text can be displayed on the network.
2. It is possible to use GNE node bitmaps as default images for nodes of specific entity types.
3. It is possible to use link shape points as polygon vertices.
4. There have been modest updates to the user interface, to be more consistent with latest Windows software.
5. You may add textual information about the network as a whole and display that information on the network.
6. Two new Sketch Pad modes have been added that allows shape points to be converted to nodes and nodes converted to shape points.  These modes act like link splice and link split, except that all other shape points are preserved.
7. A new Sketch Pad mode has been added that allows merging of two nodes.  One node is deleted and the other node gets the former node's links and polygon.  If both nodes have polygons, then GNE attempts to form a union of both polygons.  Nodes can be merged with shape points if the node does not own a polygon or have any attached links.
8. GNE can import 2000 TIGER line files.
9. GNE can Update directly from dbf files and GNE can Extract directly to dbf files.
10. It is possible to obtain the A to B orientation of links (azimuth) in worksheets, Extract, and Calculate.
11. Variable names have been created for most link and node properties so that they can be easily included in various GNE expressions including Calculate, node sizes, worksheets, and link widths.  Properties include node coordinates, link coordinates, polygon area, polygon perimeter, polygon centroid, link length, number of polygon vertices, number of shape points, and link orientation.
12. Variable names have been created for system attributes so they can be conveniently included into GNE expressions.
13. Calculate has four new statements that better exploit the topological nature of the data base:  DONS (do node sweep); DOLS (do link sweep); DOVS (do vertex sweep); and DOOS (do owner sweep).  These statements perform similarly to CALL (for executing one line subroutines), except the statement is applied to all items in a list of elements associated with the node or link currently being calculated.  DONS sweeps across the A-end and B-end nodes of a link, executing the called line on each ending node.  DOLS sweeps across all links attached to a single node and executes the called line on each link.  Similarly, DOVS sweeps across vertex nodes when calculating on an owner, and DOOS sweeps across all owner nodes when calculating on a vertex.
14. GNE remembers the editing environment at the time that a network is closed or saved.  If the network is "reopened" it will restore the previous zoom settings, toolbars, scroll setting, snap distance, etc.
15. Extensive additional "hints" have been added at various places in the program.
16. It is possible to easily lookup attributes when writing link width and node size expressions and insert the correct attribute name into the expression.
17. Calculate has a new command, FUSE, which does wholesale node elimination by performing "node-to-shape" operations on all nodes of a requested type.
18. There is a new Sketch Pad mode that finds the intersection of any one link with all other links and places nodes at all points of intersections, thereby connecting the links that would otherwise  pass over one another.
19. Calculate has a new command, LNKX, that finds link intersections wholesale.
20. GNE can show links as user-defined bitmaps.  As with node bitmaps, you can designate an entity type to display a specific bitmap or a group of bitmaps can be used with link width expressions.  Bitmaps rotate with link orientation.  Up to 240 link bitmaps may be active during any GNE session.
21. GNE can display legends for node size and link width expressions.
22. GNE can generate more than two dozen color palettes that can be easily used for polygon, link and node colors.
23. It is possible to override GNE's logical shape for any given node or link with a chosen bitmap.
24. Calculate has a new command, MRGE, which causes any nodes within a specified distance of a given node to be merged with the given node.
25. GNE can read ESRI (ArcInfo/ArcView) shapefiles.  All file types are supported, including points, polylines, and polygons.  Update has been modified to allow easy interaction between dbf files with shapefiles.
26. Both import features, TIGER and shapefiles, can perform four types of map projections, including Lambert Conformal and Transverse Mercator, to convert long/lat to pixels.
27. GNE can fill polygons with user-defined bitmaps.  Up to 240 fill bitmaps may be active during any GNE session.
28. Node and link labels may be placed anywhere relative to the node or link.
29. It is possible to display arrows only on links of a specific type.
30. It is possible to inspect and precisely set the extents of the Sketch Pad (top, bottom, left, right).
31. It is possible to make layer selection a function of the zoom state.
32. Two new "tools" allow wholesale reinitialization of undefined nodes and links.
33. GNE has an Auto Backup which backups the current network automatically every 15 minutes.
34. The GNE Reference Manual is provided on the CD-ROM as a pdf file.
35. GNE comes with 240 sample node bitmaps, 240 sample link bitmaps, and 41 sample fill bitmaps.

QRS II 6

1. It is possible to define production or attraction expressions for any purpose.  Expressions may contain up to 35 attributes (real or categorical) and are similar in syntax to link width expressions in GNE.  Rather complex trip generation models may be implemented without requiring a spreadsheet, P&A tags, or AddPsAs.txt.  All four trip generation methods may be used in the same simulation.
2. It is possible to define occupancy expressions for any purpose.  Expressions may contain 35 attributes of the production zone, 35 attributes of the attraction zone, auto time (either direction), transit disutility (either direction), third mode time (either direction), attraction and production zone numbers, attraction and production centroid coordinates, or base occupancies.  The occupancy expressions can be used to implement a choice model across nontransit modes.
3. It is possible to define expressions to add times to either the highway mode or the transit mode when performing mode split.  These expression can include all the same inputs available for the occupancy expressions.
4. A new file format for Param.txt will make future upgrades easier.  Param.txt is also self documenting and readable by people.
5. A new applications schema that allows capacities and approach codes to vary by direction of travel, allows a constant time penalty to be added to links, has a more convenient set of attributes for special generator centroids, allows parameter set selection directly on the centroid, and has a distance attribute on links.  Because of the complexity of the new application schema, the old schema has been retained for those interested in a simpler set of inputs.
6. QRS II can be executed and closed from another program or from a set of batch commands.
7. It is possible to add both person trip tables and vehicle trip tables in the same run.
8. Select link analysis has been expanded to include a report containing the flows on all links that pass through one or more selected links.
9. Districting, adding P&A tags and adding a seed tag can be accomplished with polygons, as well as with pieces of strings.
10. QRS II can perform a new style of traffic assignment that essentially assigns trips point-to-point rather than zone-to-zone.  This method should improves assignment in low-density areas when zones are large.
11. The maximum number of zones in the largest edition has been increased to 3600.  The various editions have zone maximums of 15 (demo), 60 (educational), 400, 800, 1600, and 3600.
12. Delay at signalized intersections may be calculated with the operational analysis method from the 1997 HCM, Chapter 9.  The method also incorporates the upstream filtering adjustment from Chapter 11, recognizing the degree of congestion at adjacent intersections.  It is possible to now include triple exclusive left lanes in all three signalized delay methods.  It is possible to override QRS II green-time allocation procedure and enter your own timing plans.
13. Delay at someway stop controlled intersections can be calculated with the method from the 1997 HCM, Chapter 10.  The method also includes the upstream filtering on major approaches from adjacent signals.  It is now possible to have three-lane approaches to stop signs.
14. QRS II's all-way stop delay procedure was enhanced so that it could closely emulate the procedure from the 1997 HCM.  Since the core parts of 1997 HCM procedure were written to match the same principles as originally contained in QRS II, only parameters changes are needed to achieve practical consistency with the HCM.  It is now possible to have three-lane approaches.
15. QRS II has the ability to recognize the proportion of trucks in the traffic stream and to adjust delay relationships accordingly.
16. There have been modest improvements to the user interface, including the ability to rename trip purposes to better match project objectives.
17. QRS II can now handle yield signs.  Yield signs are an offshoot of the some-way stop procedure, using guidance from the roundabout section of chapter 10 and advice on critical gaps from the 1985 HCM.  Yield signs can be used at low-volume intersections, channelized right turns, and at entrances to 1-lane roundabouts.  Both two-lane and one-lane yield signs are possible.
18. One run of QRS II can initiate another run of QRS II.  The process is referred to as "cascade".  Each run has a separate parameter directory, so the characteristics of the runs can differ considerably.  Multiple cascades can be initiated from a single run.  The ability to cascade allows unusual feedback options, automatic inclusion of freight forecasts, indefinite extensions of the number of trip purposes, external trip table preparation, etc.  In addition, it is possible to have QRS II accumulate assigned volumes into the base volume field of Output.dta, thereby facilitating preassignment of trips for subsequent QRS II runs or cascading.  Cascade can be used to prepare vehicle trip tables (AddVTrips.txt), base movement files (AddBase.txt) and third mode times (AddTrdMd.txt) for any other QRS II run.
19. Three additional "hooks" have been added for user-supplied subroutines -- AtStart, PostAveraging and PostRun.  PostRun may be especially helpful for post-processing simulation results.
20. QRS II reports VMT, VHT and average speed by functional class.
21. QRS II can calculate total air pollution emissions for up to 4 pollutants or it can calculate up to 4 MOE's that are a function of speed, distance, volume, and functional class.
22. An option has been added to allow QRS II to assume time of day distributions of traffic when adding vehicle trip tables in multihour forecasts, thereby eliminating the need for a VolHourU.txt file for most simulations.
23. Mode split can now include a user-definable "third mode".  This mode can be introduced by way of an "add" time file or by disutility expressions.  The third mode does not have a network, but can access information from the highway and transit networks.  The third mode is suitable for nonmotorized transportation, passengers or other modes not requiring a loaded network.  Disutility expressions may contain any of the information available for occupancy expressions.
24. It is possible to exclude one or more functional classes from a traffic assignment.  This feature can be useful when a vehicle type is restricted from using certain links.  For example, heavy trucks can be restricted from weak bridges or single passenger autos can be restricted from HOV lanes.
25. QRS II now includes all activity allocation features of HLFM II+.  HLFM II+ is no longer sold as a separate product.  The activity allocation procedures have been enhanced to permit weights on district areas to allow better base-case calibration.
26. The program is now being compiled with Delphi 5, which provides better long-term operating system compatibility and faster execution.
27. The program is distributed on CD-ROM and contains the complete QRS II Reference Manual and all GNE bitmaps.

Bug Fixes:

Release 6.0.1:  Fixed an innocous bug that caused the Signal.txt file sometimes displays a delay for a left movement.  This delay value should always be zero.  The bug only affects this report and does not affect any of the delay calculations.  Fixed a bug that caused QRS II to not create a protected phase when given a Green L value on the network.

Release 6.0.2:  Fixed a bug that caused QRS II to fail to recognize phasing options where only one approach has a protected left.  Allowed QRS II to have access times on transit networks greater than 324 minutes.  Placed a time stamp at each equilibrium iteration in the History box.

Release 6.0.3:  Fixed a bug that caused QRS II to crash if a label has been selected from the entity format dialog box for  the initial node.  Fixed a bug that caused QRS II to crash if a link is selected when using area spread assignment.  The link-to-link matrix is still not available with area spread assignment.

Release 6.0.5:  Fixed a bug that inactivated the inflation adjustment parameter.

Release 6.0.6:  Fixed a bug that prevented QRS II from running if the initial parameter directory was invalid.  Also, fixed a bug that would sometimes cause QRS II to crash if an AddHTime.txt file was provided by the user.

Not yet released 6.0.7:  Fixed a bug that sometimes caused QRS II to stop on an error when there were external stations in the network.  Fixed a bug that would cause QRS II to reject an intersection in AddBase.txt if the intersection had one-way links.  Fixed a bug that would cause QRS II to crash on some very old networks.  Fixed a bug that put blank lines into AddBase.txt when created from a completely empty TurnMove.txt during Cascade.

Version 6.1.0.  Added the ability to read networks created with GNE Version 7.  Added the ability to apply a constant factor to AddVTrips.txt.

Release 6.1.1.  Fixed a bug that could cause slow convergence of equilibrium traffic assignments when the "extra time" attributes are used in the "detailed" schema.  Also, eliminated the maintenance release number from the About box.  To learn the release number, right click QRS II's icon in Windows Explorer and select Properties.

Release 6.1.2.  Fixed a bug that could cause QRS II to crash while trying to read a GNE 7 file with polygons, notes or special formatting.

Release 6.1.3.  Fixed a memory leak.  Fixed a bug that prevented QRS II from reading transit files saved from GNE 7.  (Workaround:  resave transit files to a new file name in GNE 6 file format before running QRS II.)

Release 6.1.4.  Resolves an issue in Versions 6.0 and 6.1 of QRS II which fill the ThrdTrip.txt file with information when doing trip distribution for the NHB trip purpose.  Thus, this file will contain all zeros for simulations that do not contain the NHB trip purpose.  Eliminates a bug that caused QRS II to look in the temporary directory (rather than the reports directory) for HighDis.bin when doing a cascade to produce Add3rdMd.txt.

Release 6.1.5.  Fixed a file name conflict that prevented cascading a third mode trip table.  Rationalized the use of extra times and distances so that their effect on the network is more intuitively reasonable.

Release 6.1.6.  Fixed a problem in the someway stop routine that cause the traffic in the exclusive right lane of  a 3-lane approach to be ignored.

Y2K

Getting Maintenance Releases of GNE 7 or QRS II 6

Previous GNE Version Release Information

1. Several networks may be opened simultaneously.
2. Each network may have several different "views".  A view consists of link widths, node sizes, labels, zoom states,  direction arrows, Calculate program, Extract/Update setups, etc.  The network may be edited and saved from any "view".
3. Each Sketch Pad mode has it own button.
4. Hint boxes are extensively used.
5. Minimum zoom is now 1:24.
6. Sketch Pad may have a maximum size of 1 million pixels in each dimension (was 32000).
7. Maximum number of attributes has been increased to 35 (from 10); maximum number of categorical variables per attribute has been increased to 8 (from 6).
8. Full support for Win95 file names.
9. Significant improvement in speed of network transformations and plots.
10. Links may have shape points.
11. Clipboard plots may be clipped to margin limits.
12. User interface updated to have a look similar to latest Win95 applications.
13. Link arrow sizes can be controlled by link width functions.
14. Improved precision for size and width functions:  up to 40 intervals for link widths, nodes sizes, and polygon styles.  Up to 41 different polygon styles may be defined.
15. More efficient and intuitive setting of of size and width intervals.
16. Two link width or node size expressions may be defined for each entity type.  Both expressions may be applied to any entity, allowing dual variable widths, variable widths and colors, variable polygons styles and node colors, etc.
17. Up to 16 user-defined colors (previously 10) may be applied to links and nodes.
18. Additional trig functions (arccos, arcsin, tan) available in Calculate and all expressions.
19. Up to 35 parameters and up to 35 network-wide variables may be defined in a Calculate program.
20. Number of dialog boxes in Calculate has been reduced substantially.  Most important parts of Calculate are now contained on a single dialog box.
21. Each value for a categorical variable may have a hint (yellow popup tags).  Hints appear whenever a categorical variable is presented or defined.
22. Date attributes may have any year (previously 1900 to 2154).
23. Improved precision of extracted data when using delimited file formats.
24. Ability to create nodes and link directly with Update, thereby eliminating the need for the TOPO utility.
25. Up to 10 Jpeg images and up to 10 Windows metafile images (of any size) may be placed behind the network to enhance outputs, to provide backgrounds, or to provide digitizing information.  Metafile images may be created by a variety of graphics programs or images may be transmitted through the clipboard.
26. Images may be resized or relocated with the mouse or with dialog box controls.
27. Nodes and shape points may be moved or deleted with the mouse or keyboard.
28. Any active "view" may be used as a background for any other active "view".
29. Image shift and margins (for plotting) may be controlled with the mouse, directly on the network.
30. Ability to plot the network to a file in WMF or EMF (metafile) formats for importing into other software and for preparing background images for other networks.
31. Expanded and improved Help, including context sensitive topics.
32. A tool to find skim trees from a single origin, using any function of link attributes.  This tool can also be used to build trees from several origins simultaneously, thereby doing market area analysis over the network.  Shortest path distances to any node may be computed.
33. Delete by Search
34. Delete by Calculate

GNE 6 Maintenance Releases

Version 6.0.2 fixed a bug that caused GNE to cease drawing the network on the Sketch Pad when displaying links as double lines and when there are links of zero length.  Zero length links can occur when two nodes are directly on top on one another.

The next maintenance release (6.0.3) contained an experimental and undocumented ability to display nodes as bitmaps.  Click here for more information on working with this feature.  This maintenance release also fixed a minor bug in how an Update error message is formatted.

Release 6.0.4 fixed a minor bug that sometimes caused GNE to forget the location of node bitmaps and the help file when GNE was launched by double clicking a *.dta file name.  This release also added a Reopen item to the File menu that allows quick reopening of any of the last 4 *.dta files that have been closed.

Release 6.0.6 fixed a minor problem with the display of shape points when node bitmaps are also being displayed.  This release also fixed a problem with Update.  When there were many shape points in the network, Update sometimes failed to find some link labels.  (GNE release 6.0.5 contained minor code changes and was not distributed.)

Release 6.0.7 fixed a bug that prevents saving files in an older format when there are more than 10 attributes on links or nodes.  This bug is unlikely to affect QRS II users, as all QRS II networks have 10 or fewer attributes.

Release 6.0.8 fixed a bug that causes a temporary reversal of the first and second link labels under certain conditions.  Very few copies of release 6.0.8 were distributed because while fixing the labeling problem the link split mode was broken.  This problem was quickly fixed in version 6.0.9.

Release 6.0.10 fixed a bug that caused temporary graphics problems with links that had been split or spliced in the current session.  This release also fixed a few other minor graphics problems and a bug that caused the Lookup Table dialog box to twice report errors in inputs.

Release 6.0.11 fixed a bug that sometimes caused an error in the calculation of polygon area with the Overlay Tool if the polygon had recently changed shape when moving a vertex node in the Select Object mode.

Release 6.0.12 tried to fix a bug that sometimes caused unstraight columns in Extract's columnar format.  It fixed a minor bug in the View Bitmaps dialog box that on rare occasions causes GNE to display an error message.

Release 6.0.13 fixed a minor bug that permitted text to be entered into the list box on the Network Underlay dialog box.  If text is entered there, GNE reports a "stack overflow" error.  This release also fixed a bug that forces GNE to return a 0 for any expression containing a categorical attribute with more than 6 variables.  This bug is unlikely to be a problem for any QRS II users as the maximum number of variables in any categorical attribute is 4.

Release 6.0.14 fixed a minor bug that sometimes caused a recently closed file to be omitted form the "reopen" list.

Release 6.0.15 fixed the unstraight column bug that should have been fixed in release 6.0.12.

Release 6.0.16 fixed a bug that sometimes omitted editing changes to GNE programs before the program is saved.  This release also fixed a minor bug that sometimes added junk to new attribute values when appending a network with a small number of attributes to an application schema with a larger number of attributes.  New attributes will now always receive a value of zero during an append.

Release 6.0.17 and 6.018 again tried to fix the junk attribute values problem that should have been fixed in release 6.0.16.

Release 6.0.19 fixed a bug that sometimes caused nodes to be rejected during Sketch Pad selection when there are shape points in the network.  This release performs a trim after every transformation.  A bug which sometimes interfered with closing the Extract box was removed.

Release 6.0.20 compiled GNE using Delphi 5.  This release was not distributed.  The recompilation of GNE fixed a problem on some computers where GNE used an abnormally large amount of Windows resources.

Release 6.0.21 fixed a bug that caused display problems after a network with polygons underwent a transformation.  This version also fixed a bug that caused some link labels to be misplaced when labels are rotated and the along-the-link alignment was "centered".

Release 6.0.22 fixed a bug that (under extremely rare circumstances) would cause GNE to believe that a normal link was a looped link when the network is first opened.  This release also fixed a bug that would cause a node bitmap to be displayed for shape points when a double width link is being drawn.  This release eliminated the spurious error massage the appears when a shape point is selected instead of a node during certain sketch pad operations.

Release 6.0.23 removed an coding inconsistency from Extract, which may or may not have been a bug.

Release 6.0.24 fixed a bug that could cause wrong attribute values to be assigned to a node or link.  The conditions for the bug to appear are rare:  you must have link width or node size expressions displayed on the network and perform a calculation with a GNE worksheet.

Release 6.0.25 upgrades the link redirection Sketch Pad feature to also reverse the order of the shape points.

Release 6.0.26 fixes a bug that can cause information (or/and) in the Search dialog box to be lost when a file is saved to disk.
 

QRS II Version 5.1

1. Ability to have travel times up to 1200 minutes for statewide travel forecasting;
2. An increase to a maximum of 32,000 links in the 2400-zone edition;
3. An ability to have up to 10 active sets of parameters for each of time-of-day, occupancy, friction factors, production rates, attraction rates, and mode split.
4. Optional default parameters consistent with NCHRP Report #365 (replacement for NCHRP Report #187).
5. A new report documenting the degree of congestion on the network.  The report consists of VHT broken down by functional class and the ratio of travel time to free time.
6. Ability to have a composite cost coefficient that differs from the mode split multiplier.
7. A new report providing the distance (scaled from the network) associated with the minimum path between all origins and destinations.
8. Ability to read networks from GNE 6.0.
9. Ability to use link shape points when determining link length.
10. Application schemas for highways networks implement categorical hints and default link and node specifications.
11. Ability to load trips to networks in time bands from the origin to see how long distance trips progress through the network over the course of several hours.
12. Fixed a bug that prevented reporting of the problem signalized intersection when there is an error in data.
13. Fixed a bug that limited the length of highway file names to 100 characters, including folders.

Upgrading from Earlier QRS II Versions

We recognize the inconvenience associated with upgrading QRS II for a network currently in progress.  The next version of QRS II (6.0) will have an entirely different structure for its parameter files that will make upgrades virtually automatic.

Known Problems with QRS II version 5.1

PROBLEM:  QRS II fails to recognize centroid and link names with trailing blanks when included in "Add" files.
WORKAROUND:  Remove trailing blanks in names in GNE for the nodes and link that are affected.

PROBLEM:  QRS II sometimes fails to use the through adjustment (penalty) at intersections with delay that connect just two links.  The reference manual states that other adjustments (penalties) are inactive in this situation.
WORKAROUND:  QRS II in being inappropriately sensitive to the through traffic codes.  Make sure that both links have the same through traffic code.  (Do not place the penalty in the other movements attribute, which will work now, as this will be eliminated as a possible solution to the problem in all subsequent releases of QRS II.)  If both links are one-way, change the downstream link into a two-way street.

The maintenance release (5.1.1) also removes an innocuous bug that increased the amount of time required to perform vehicle occupancy calculations.

The next maintenance release (5.1.2) fixes a bug that caused a misreporting of the number of intrazonal trips in Output.dta.  The numbers of intrazonal trips were not being equilibrium averaged.  Intrazonal trips were correct in Table.bin, and the last iteration intrazonal trips were correctly reported in Vehtrips.txt.

The latest maintenance release (5.1.3) fixes a bug that caused an incorrect delay to be calculated for certain signalized intersections.  Under some circumstances, the bug could result in a negative delay, which would cause QRS II to terminate with a warning.  The bug occurred when using the 1994 HCM procedures when there was overlapping phases and protected/permitted phasing.

Use of NCHRP Report #365 Parameters