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An Introduction to MOVES:

Project Level Modeling

FHWA Resource Center

EPA Office of Transportation and Air Quality

EPA-420-B-09-019
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Outline

z Introduction

z Defining the Project

z Creating the MOVES Runspec

z Entering the Project Level Data

Project Domain/Scale is the finest level of 

modeling in MOVES. 

It allows the user to model the emission effects 

from a group of specific roadway links and/or a 

single off-network common area. 

The definition of a roadway link is a section of any 

road where a vehicle is moving for more than three 

seconds. 
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Introduction 

z The National Academy of Sciences suggested that 

EPA add a ‘microscale’ model domain to its 

emission modeling ‘toolkit’

z Project level allows MOVES modeling at the ‘Link’

level

– Roadway links

– Off-network link

z Project level models the ‘average’ conditions on a 

set of connected link(s). It does not perform 

‘SimCity type simulations’ or traffic demand 

modeling

An off-network common area may include project 

boundaries where vehicle starts, extended idling and 

evaporative emissions are produced. 

The use of the Project Domain/Scale requires the user 

to completely define the individual project (i.e., specify 

all individual roadway links and/or off-network common 

area). 

The MOVES Project Domain/Scale will utilize MOVES 

emission rates and other factors to correctly calculate 

emission inventory results for the user’s defined project.
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Introduction (cont.)

z Utilizes MOVES emission rates and correction 

factors 

z It does NOT utilize the regular MOVES growth, VMT 

or population data. These must be supplied by the 

user.

z It allows the user to specify only one combination 

of ... per run

– County

– Year

– Month 

– Hour
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Introduction (cont.)

z All pollutants covered

z Chained pollutants require inputs for the entire 

‘chain’

z Processes covered

– Running

– Start

– Extended Idle

– Brake and Tire

z Evaporative processes NOT Covered

z Only Calculation Type of “Inventory” may be done.

DRAFT MOVES2009 is not capable of modeling any 

evaporative emission processes when using Project 

Domain/Scale. EPA plans to remedy this feature in 

future versions of MOVES.

Only the Inventory Calculation Type may be selected in 

conjunction with the Project Domain/Scale. 
Example Project
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Define the Project

Parking Lot Roadway Link

Basic Schematic of the Project
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Project Assumptions

z Only two links (inbound and outbound from a parking lot) 

exist.

z The two links and the off-network link are independent 

z The off-network link consists of parking, extended idle and 

starts.

z Only heavy-duty combination long-haul diesel trucks are 

present on the roadway

z Only nitrogen oxide emissions are included. 

z Only one hour of operation is considered. 
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Specific Project Data (parameters)

z Parameter Name Parameter

z Location County Washtenaw County, MI

z Calendar Year 2009

z Month January

z Weekday/Weekend Weekday

z Time 11:00 PM to 11:59:59 PM

z Temperature 28.5 F

z Humidity 69.5 %

z Roadtype of links Rural Unrestricted Access
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Specific Project Data (link data)

z Parameter Name Parameter

z Roadway Link Length 0.998 miles

z Link Traffic Volume - In 100 trucks per hour

z Link Traffic Volume - Out 10 trucks per hour

z Link Average Speed - In 28.5 miles per hour

z Link Average Speed – Out 28.5 miles per hour
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Specific Project Data (Off-network data)

z Parameter Name Parameter

z Average Vehicle Population 200 vehicles 

z Start Fraction 0.03

z Extended Idle Fraction 0.90

z Parked Vehicle Fraction 0.09
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Specific Project Data (start data)

OpmodeID 

Code 

Operating Mode Description Operating Mode Fraction 

101 Soak Time < 6 minutes 0.00 

102 6 minutes <= Soak Time < 30 minutes 0.05 

103 30 minutes <= Soak Time < 60 minutes 0.30 

104 60 minutes <= Soak Time < 90 minutes 0.10 

105 90 minutes <= Soak Time < 120 minutes 0.50 

106 120 minutes <= Soak Time < 360 minutes 0.00 

107 360 minutes <= Soak Time < 720 minutes 0.00 

108 720 minutes <= Soak Time 0.05 

200 Extended Idle 1.00 
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Spreadsheet Inputs

z DriveScheduleSecondLink

z OffNetworkLink

z ZoneMonthHour (temperature)

z LinkSourceTypeHour

z SourcetypeAgeDistribution

z FuelSupply

z Link

z OpModeDistribution
Creating a MOVES Runspec
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Click to enter database name
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Creating a Project Database
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Enter Database Name

Click to Create Database
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Project Database Tab

z Create a Project Level Database

– Project level database will contain all of the user data for use

by MOVES. During execution, MOVES does not ‘read’ data 

from Excel spreadsheets, but imports the data into a project 

level database.

– Server is usually ‘localhost’

– Refresh button updates the list of databases

– Create Database creates a new project level database

z “Done” button

– This button merely closes the project level input GUI.
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Runspec Tabs

z Runspec tab 

– Echoes a summary of the runspec

z Time

z Geography

z Vehicle types

z Road types

z Pollutants

z Additional User Databases

– Be careful of Runspec changes after you create a Project 

Database
Operating Mode & 

Drive Schedule Data

The Operating Mode Distribution Importer is used 

only in the Project Domain Manager. It allows the 

user to import operating mode fraction data for source 

types, hour / day combinations, roadway links and 

pollutant / process combinations that are included in the 

RunSpec and Project domain. 
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Opmode & Driving Schedule

Two Tabs

z Operating Mode and Driving Schedule Tabs have 

Interactions

– Operating mode distribution input is required for the ...

z Start process

z Extended idle process

z Running process where no drive schedule is supplied

– Drive Schedule Input is optional and used only for roadway 

links and the ‘running’ process.

These data are entered as a distribution across 

operating modes. Operating modes are "modes"of

vehicle activity that have distinct emission rates. For 

example, "running" activity has modes that are 

distinguished by their Vehicle Specific Power and 

instantaneous speed. "Start" activity has modes that 

are distinguished by the time the vehicle has been 

parked prior to the start ("soak time"). 

For a given source type, hour/day combination, 

roadway link and pollutant / process combination, the 

operating mode distribution must sum to one.
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Operating Mode Distribution
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Start with Create Template
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Project Level Templates

z Template button creates an Excel Workbook

z First tab (starting from the left) in the Workbook is 

where the user supplied data are entered. This is the 

‘active’ worksheet.

z Remaining tabs define the required fields as an 

assistance to the user.

z It is recommended that the user utilize the Template 

function in the initial set-up of the project. However, 

after the project is established, ‘active’ worksheets 

may be collapsed into a single workbook.
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Operating Mode Distribution Data

z Inputs must be supplied for each ...

– Source Type 

– Hour / Day Combination

– Project Link

– Pollutant Process Combination

– Operating Mode

z Must sum to unity within a group

z Operating mode definitions vary by process

– 23 operating modes for running

– 8 operating modes for start

– 1 operating mode for extended idle

– 16 operating modes for tire / brake process
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Enter Link and opMode

Fractions
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Roadway Link
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Off-Network Start Link
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Browse and Import Data from Spreadsheet
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Link Drive Schedule Rules

z Link Drive Schedules is an optional input for 

roadway links only.

z MOVES converts drive schedule data into 

operating mode distributions

z Default data are not available 

z User supplies speed / time / percent grade data for 

each second for each link

z If data for one roadway link is supplied then data 

for ALL roadway links must be supplied

z Operating Mode Distribution data will over-ride 

Link Drive Schedule data if both are present
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Speed / Time Trace for Example Links

S peed / Time Trace for E xample Links

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5

10

15

20

25

30

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1 21 41 61 81 101 121

Time (seconds)

Speed (mph)

Link 1

Link 2
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Browse and Import Data from Spreadsheet
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Age Fractions sum to unity

for each Source Type

30 MYs must be entered
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Export Default Data First !

Browse and Import Previously Exported Data
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Project Level Allows / Recommends 

the Use of Default Fuel Data
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Export Default Data First !

Browse and Import Previously Exported Data
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Change Default Temperature / Humidity

Data to Local Data
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The Links Importer is used only in the Project 

Domain Manager. It allows the user to define 

individual roadway links. The MOVES links need not 

correspond to traffic modeling "links" but each link 

should be uniform in its activity as described by the 

following parameters. 
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Link Inputs

z LinkID

z CountyID

z ZoneID

z RoadTypeID

z Link Length

z Link Volume

z Link Average Speed

z Link Description

z Each link in Project must be 

entered

z ZoneID has a zero at the 

end

z Each link is associated with 

a MOVES roadtype

z Link Length is in MILES

z Link Volume is total traffic 

volume in one hour

z Link Average Speed is in 

miles per hour

z Link Description is a non 

executing text field

Each link requires a linkID (i.e., a unique integer 

between 1 and 99999 that is used to reference the link 

in the program), 

countyID, zoneID, and roadTypeID

(these also must be specified in the Runspec or an 

error will occur),

the length of the roadway link in units of miles, the 

traffic volume on the roadway link in units of vehicles 

per hour, and the average speed of all of the vehicles 

on the roadway link in the given hour. The link 

description field is a text field included for reference and 

has no impact on the calculations.
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A project may include a single off-network (parking lot 

or other non-road) link. For an off-network link, the 

user should enter a value of zero for link length, link 

volume and link average speed. 
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Source Type Distribution for Each Link
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The Off Network Importer is used only in the Project 

Domain Manager. It provides information about vehicles are 

not driving on the project links, but still contribute to the project 

emissions. For each source type in the RunSpec, ‘vehicle 

population’ is the average number of "off network” vehicles. 

The ‘start fraction’ field is a number from 0 to 1.0 which 

specifies the fraction of this population which has a ‘start’

operation in the given hour. 

The ‘extendedIdle fraction’ field is a number from 0 to 1.0 

which specifies the fraction of the population which has had an 

‘extended idle’ operation in the given hour. 

Finally, the ‘parked vehicle fraction’ field is a number from 0 to 

1.0 which specifies the fraction of the ‘vehicle population’

which have been parked in the given hour. 
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Off-Network Tab

z Source Type

z Vehicle Population

– Average number of off-network vehicles

z Start Fraction

– Average fraction of the population which has been started 

during the hour (may be greater than unity if the average 

vehicle is started more than once per hour)

z Extended Idle Fraction

– Only used for long-haul diesel trucks (0 – 1.0 range)

z Parked Vehicle Fraction

– Only used for Evaporative, and is currently inactive.

For example, a vehicle population of 10 long-haul 

combination trucks with a start fraction of 0.5, an 

extended idle fraction of 0.25 and a parked vehicle 

fraction of 0.5 implies that the project includes the 

emissions associated with 5 starts, 150 minutes of 

extended idling and 300 minutes of parking for this 

sourcetype.

/Note Draft MOVES2009 computes extended idle 

emissions only for long-haul combination trucks, not for 

other sourcetypes; thus the extendedIdleFraction is 

ignored for sourcetypeids other than 62.

/Note Draft MOVES2009 does not compute 

evaporative emissions at the Project Domain/Scale; 

thus, the "parked vehicle fraction" is ignored.
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Project GUI Buttons

z Export Default Data

– Fuel Supply and Meteorology tabs only

z Export Most Recent Execution Data

– Exports results from a previous MOVES run

– MOVES Execution Data must exist

– Exports to an Excel Spreadsheet

– Might be useful for building additional project level inputs

z Export Imported Data

– Exports data contained in the project level database back to an 

Excel Spreadsheet

– Useful for checking data / debugging
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Project GUI Buttons (cont.)

z Clear Imported Data

– Wipes out data from the project level database for a selected 

tab. 

– Allows the user to get rid of selected data in their project level 

database.

– Use this button if ...

z The inputs for a particular table have changed. Wipe out 

the old table before IMPORTING the new table

z The inputs for the Runspec have changed. Wipe out all of 

the project level tables before IMPORTING the new tables.
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Database Tab

z User Provides the Name of the Database in this GUI 

Window

z Provides a Log of the Project Level Data Import 

Activity

– Date

– Time

– Name of the Database Table
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Empty Database Has No Data in the Log
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Tools tab

z Generate Importer XML File

– Similar to a Runspec File (GUI inputs are represented as XML 

text)

– XML file will contain a path/filename to the location of the 

spreadsheet data files. Actual data is not contained in the 

XML file.

– Project Level Databases can be run using DOS command line 

scripts

z Tools tab is not fully developed or supported.

setenv

java gov.epa.otaq.moves.master.commandline.MOVESCommandLine -e DEBUG -i 

Task816CountyDataManager\importAllFromTemplates.xml

Command Line Example

Once the GUI is used to create an importer XML file, it can be edited and executed 

via the command line. Remember that when using the command line, text output is 

not sent to the screen but instead stored in MOVESBatch.log.

An example command line is:

setenv

java gov.epa.otaq.moves.master.commandline.MOVESCommandLine -e DEBUG -i 

Task816CountyDataManager\importAllFromTemplates.xml

Be sure to place all of this on one line. The “-e DEBUG” portion ensures that all 

messages will be captured, even if just informational. The “-i” option directs 

MOVES to the XML file that describes the import actions to occur. Note that this 

XML file essentially contains a RunSpec within it, thus allowing wildcards even 

when done via the command line.
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Project Level Output

z Results are placed in the standard MOVESOutput

table.

z LinkID is added to each record if road type is 

selected in the MOVES output GUI.