Transportation Systems Simulation - A Tutorial for Multi-Modal Simulation Using VISSIM/VISSIM

This is an introduction the program’s interface, user preferences and network settings. There are a few key icons and functions within the program’s interface worth mentioning.

The content below is also available as a video. Click the following YouTube link:  VISSIM Tutorial: Toolbar and Network Objects 

VISSIM Interface
When starting the application for the first time, VISSIM will prompt you to define the right click behavior. This tutorial was written using the first option, where Right Clicking the mouse will open the context menu. Select “opens the context menu” and then Click OK. Some important functions within the VISSIM interface are shown in the image below:

File Type
The default file type when saving is a “VISSIM Network File”, it has a “.inpx” extension.

Customizing the Toolbar
Below the menu is the toolbar. To customize your toolbar, Right Click anywhere on the toolbar and select customize. Explore each tab and configure these settings to your preferred style and layout.

Network Objects
The toolbar located on the left hand side of the screen has 3 tabs: Network Objects, Levels and Background. Network Objects is the default selection.

The most fundamental Network Objects needed to create most networks include:
 * 1) Links and Connectors
 * 2) Stop Signs
 * 3) Signal Heads
 * 4) Detectors
 * 5) Vehicle Inputs
 * 6) Vehicle Routes
 * 7) Data Collections Points
 * 8) Background Images

Network Settings
To change the Units to Imperial or Metric, select Base Data > Network Setting, then select the Units tab. Click on "All Imperial", then Click OK