Free five-part traffic simulation course
Build a real-world intersection from a blank canvas, then add traffic demand, right-of-way, fixed and actuated signals, pedestrians, and public transportation. Each lesson connects the software tools to the transportation-engineering decisions behind them.
Start here
Before clicking through menus, understand what each tool represents and how the pieces of a credible microsimulation fit together.
PTV Vissim is a microscopic, multimodal traffic simulator. It represents individual road users and their interactions so you can test intersection, corridor, signal-control, public-transport, and operational scenarios before making a real-world change.
PTV Viswalk adds detailed pedestrian movement to the same simulation environment. It helps model walking routes, crosswalks, waiting areas, boarding activity, and interactions between pedestrians, vehicles, and signals.
Important: RoadwayVR's course is free. PTV Vissim and PTV Viswalk are commercial PTV products, so you still need a suitable license, academic access, or trial to follow along in the software.
Full course roadmap
Follow the modules in order. The first two lessons are available now; the remaining lessons are shown so you can see exactly where the series is going.
Navigate the interface, add an OpenStreetMap background, draw links and connectors, create vehicle inputs, and configure static routing decisions.
Manage intersection right-of-way, configure conflict areas, place signal heads, and build a basic fixed-time signal plan.
Add detectors, translate NEMA phase data, and configure rings, barriers, minimum greens, maximum greens, and pedestrian timing.
Create crosswalks, pedestrian inputs and routes, waiting areas, and pedestrian signal heads synchronized with vehicle phases.
Design bus stops and lay-bys, configure transit lines and routes, and schedule departures for multimodal interactions.
Available now
Each video is a complete working session. Open the lesson on YouTube for chapters, comments, and the rest of the playlist.
1:09:00
Start from a blank file and learn the geometry, demand, and routing decisions that make traffic move through your first model.
Watch Part 1 on YouTube ↗
44:00
Set intersection priorities, troubleshoot vehicle interactions, and connect a fixed-time signal plan to signal groups and heads.
Watch Part 2 on YouTube ↗Beginner workflow
A simulation becomes easier to diagnose when geometry, demand, control, and evaluation are added as separate, testable layers.
Bring in a scaled background or map, confirm units, and decide the modeled boundaries.
Create links and connectors with the correct lanes, speeds, turns, and lane-change opportunities.
Enter volumes, vehicle compositions, turning movements, pedestrian flows, and transit service.
Use conflict areas, priority rules, signal groups, and detectors to represent right-of-way.
Run multiple seeds, inspect queues and behavior, and adjust inputs against observed field conditions.
Evaluate consistent measures across alternatives, then explain both benefits and tradeoffs.
Before you simulate
Software detail cannot compensate for weak field data. Gather the model inputs first and decide which performance measures answer your study question.
Frequently asked questions
PTV Vissim is used to test detailed traffic operations at intersections, corridors, networks, transit facilities, and multimodal locations. Because it models individual road users, it can represent interactions that aggregate planning tools do not show.
Vissim is the broader microscopic, multimodal traffic simulation environment. Viswalk is its pedestrian-focused capability for modeling walking behavior, routes, areas, crosswalks, queues, and pedestrian interactions.
The RoadwayVR tutorials are free, but PTV Vissim and PTV Viswalk are commercial products. Check PTV's official website for current trial, academic, and licensing options.
Begin with a small fixed-time controller because it is easier to trace signal groups, heads, and timing. Once that works, add detectors and actuated logic such as an RBC in a separate version of the model.
Compare simulated volumes, travel times, queues, and observed behavior with field data; use multiple random seeds; document assumptions; and calibrate only the parameters that have a defensible real-world basis.
Watch the playlist in sequence, follow new modules as they are released, and use RoadwayVR's community channels when you need help troubleshooting your model.
RoadwayVR is an independent educational resource and is not affiliated with or endorsed by PTV Group. PTV Vissim and PTV Viswalk are products of PTV Group.