# Data-driven generalized perimeter control: Z"urich case study

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.16599 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2603.16599/

## Key facts

- No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 8 of its 96 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 17 Mar 2026.

## Builds on (most cited first, 8 of 8)

- [Data-Enabled Predictive Control: In the Shallows of the DeePC](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1811.05890/) (2018)
- [Bridging direct & indirect data-driven control formulations via regularizations and relaxations](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2101.01273/) (2021)
- [DeeP-LCC: Data-EnablEd Predictive Leading Cruise Control in Mixed Traffic Flow](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2203.10639/) (2022)
- [Linear tracking MPC for nonlinear systems Part II: The data-driven case](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2105.08567/) (2021)
- [Data-Enabled Predictive Control for Grid-Connected Power Converters](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1903.07339/) (2019)
- [Data-driven representations of conical, convex, and affine behaviors](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.15354/) (2023)
- [Urban traffic congestion control: a DeePC change](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2311.09851/) (2023)
- [Split-as-a-Pro: behavioral control via operator splitting and alternating projections](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.19411/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Urban traffic congestion is a key challenge for the development of modern cities, requiring advanced control techniques to optimize existing infrastructures usage. Despite the extensive availability of data, modeling such complex systems remains an expensive and time consuming step when designing model-based control approaches. On the other hand, machine learning approaches require simulations to bootstrap models, or are unable to deal with the sparse nature of traffic data and enforce hard constraints. We propose a novel formulation of traffic dynamics based on behavioral systems theory and apply data-enabled predictive control to steer traffic dynamics via dynamic traffic light control. A high-fidelity simulation of the city of Z"urich, the largest closed-loop microscopic simulation of urban traffic in the literature to the best of our knowledge, is used to validate the performance of the proposed method in terms of total travel time and CO2 emissions.