Integrated Dynamic Routing and Off-Block Optimization Based on Taxiing Route Impedance for Airport Surface Operations

This study develops an integrated dynamic routing and off-block (IDRO) optimization framework for real-time airport surface operations. Instead of relying on complex taxi time prediction models, the proposed approach employs adynamic route impedanceformulation as a practical heuristic to capture real-time congestion conditions on the airport surface. The impedance integrates domain-specific operational factors, including free flow taxi time, turning penalties, and potential aircraft conflicts, enabling real-time route evaluation and decision-making without extensive simulation. Building upon this impedance representation, the IDRO framework coordinates both taxi routing and off-block release timing under a real-time First-Come-First-Served (FCFS) principle. The approach was implemented and tested using a high-fidelity cellular automata simulator calibrated with operational data from Beijing Capital International Airport. Compared with real-world baseline operations, the proposed framework reduced average taxi time, flight delay, and taxi conflicts by 10.43%, 24.27%, and 31.82%, respectively. A comparative study with another similar approach in the literature also reveals the advantage of the proposed strategy. These results demonstrate the framework’s computational efficiency, consistent performance across scenarios, and strong potential for real-world deployment in large-scale airport environments.