In this paper, we develop a macroscopic model for pedestrian flow using the dynamic continuum modeling approach. We consider a two-dimensional walking facility that is represented as a continuum within which pedestrians can move freely in any direction. A pedestrian chooses a route based on his or her memory of the shortest path to the desired destination when the facility is empty and, at the same time, tries to avoid high densities. In this model, pedestrian flow is governed by a two-dimensional conservation law, and a general speed-flow-density relationship is considered. The model equation is solved numerically using the discontinuous Galerkin method, and a numerical example is employed to demonstrate both the model and the effectiveness of the numerical method.

• Received 30 April 2009

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevE.79.066113