Pickup and delivery problem using metaheuristics techniques

► In this paper, we solve the pickup and delivery problem (PDP) using metaheuristics. ► Comparison of SA, PSO, GA and AIS metaheuristics. ► Real world scenario (Bangalore City) used as a test example. Dial-a-ride problem (DARP) is an optimization problem which deals with the minimization of the cost of the provided service where the customers are provided a door-to-door service based on their requests. This optimization model presented in earlier studies, is considered in this study. Due to the non-linear nature of the objective function the traditional optimization methods are plagued with the problem of converging to a local minima. To overcome this pitfall we use metaheuristics namely Simulated Annealing (SA), Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), Genetic Algorithm (GA) and Artificial Immune System (AIS). From the results obtained, we conclude that Artificial Immune System method effectively tackles this optimization problem by providing us with optimal solutions.