Simulation and verification of pedestrians in asymmetric funnel-shaped bottlenecks based on Pathfinder

Bottlenecks are common in pedestrian facilities and prone to congestion. An observation experiment was conducted at the asymmetric bottleneck to study pedestrians' movement. We constructed the simulation by Pathfinder to make comparison and further study the influence of bottleneck angles by simulation results. It is found Pathfinder can simulate the evacuation at the asymmetric bottleneck based on similar efficiency and congestion. However, the difference exists in the trajectory and speed fluctuation for the simulation. Adding the funnel-shaped zone before the exit in the asymmetric bottleneck can improve the evacuation efficiency and reduce congestion and the angle 45° performs the best according to the simulation. These results have a reference for the improvement of evacuation efficiency in the asymmetric bottleneck and reflect the effectiveness and problems of the simulation software Pathfinder.