Adaptive cell-based evacuation systems for leader-follower crowd evacuation

The challenge of controlling crowd movement at large events expands not only to the realm of emergency evacuations but also to improving non-critical conditions related to operational efficiency and comfort. In both cases, it becomes necessary to develop adaptive crowd motion control systems. In particular, adaptive cell-based crowd evacuation systems dynamically generate exit-choice recommendations favoring a coordinated group dynamic that improves safety and evacuation time. We investigate the viability of using this mechanism to develop a “leader-follower” evacuation system in which a trained evacuation staff guides evacuees safely to the exit gates. To validate the proposal, we use a simulation–optimization framework integrating microscopic simulation. Evacuees’ behavior has been modeled using a three-layered architecture that includes eligibility, exit-choice changing, and exit-choice models, calibrated with hypothetical-choice experiments. As a significant contribution of this work, the proposed behavior models capture the influence of leaders on evacuees, which is translated into exit-choice decisions and the adaptation of speed. This influence can be easily modulated to evaluate the evacuation efficiency under different evacuation scenarios and evacuees’ behavior profiles. When measuring the efficiency of the evacuation processes, particular attention has been paid to safety by using pedestrian Macroscopic Fundamental Diagrams (p-MFD), which model the crowd movement dynamics from a macroscopic perspective. The spatiotemporal view of the evacuation performance in the form of crowd-pressure vs. density values allowed us to evaluate and compare safety in different evacuation scenarios reasonably and consistently. Experimental results confirm the viability of using adaptive cell-based crowd evacuation systems as a guidance tool to be used by evacuation staff to guide evacuees. Interestingly, we found that evacuation staff motion speed plays a crucial role in balancing egress time and safety. Thus, it is expected that by instructing evacuation staff to move at a predefined speed, we can reach the desired balance between evacuation time, accident probability, and comfort. • CellEVAC, a trustworthy ally for leader-follower crowd evacuations. • Three-layered behavior model for modeling leader-follower imitation behaviors. • Behavioral model optimization to implement evacuation systems. • pMFDs based on crowd pressure to measure safety. • Imitation behavior, a trustworthy ally of CellEVAC in leader-follower evacuations.