  This paper describes the parallel implementation of the TRANSIMS traffic
micro-simulation. The parallelization method is domain decomposition, which
means that each CPU of the parallel computer is responsible for a different
geographical area of the simulated region. We describe how information between
domains is exchanged, and how the transportation network graph is partitioned.
An adaptive scheme is used to optimize load balancing. We then demonstrate how
computing speeds of our parallel micro-simulations can be systematically
predicted once the scenario and the computer architecture are known. This makes
it possible, for example, to decide if a certain study is feasible with a
certain computing budget, and how to invest that budget. The main ingredients
of the prediction are knowledge about the parallel implementation of the
micro-simulation, knowledge about the characteristics of the partitioning of
the transportation network graph, and knowledge about the interaction of these
quantities with the computer system. In particular, we investigate the
differences between switched and non-switched topologies, and the effects of 10
Mbit, 100 Mbit, and Gbit Ethernet. keywords: Traffic simulation, parallel
computing, transportation planning, TRANSIMS
