the “in silico” study of a specific scenario; cellular models reproduce jamming behavior while being simple to implement and easy to parallelize; mesoscopic models provide a high modeling flexibility; and macroscopic models provide a suitable framework for the incorporation of on-line data. Moreover, there are mathematical relations between these types of models. For example, microscopic models as well as cellular models converge to mesoscopic or macroscopic models in the limit of vanishing cell size or vehicle spacing, respectively [@Daganzo1994; @Daganzo2006; @AlperovichSopasakis2008; @BorscheKimathiKlar2012]. Similarly, macroscopic models arise as suitable limits of mesoscopic models [@NelsonSopasakis1999; @KlarWegener2000].

Microscopic and cellular models are nowadays widely used in traffic engineering, and their combination with data is ubiquitous. In contrast, certain types of continuum models have been studied mathematically, but very little work has been conducted on their validation with traffic data. Examples of macroscopic first-order models used in traffic engineering practice are the Mobile Century project [@Aminetal2008] and the Mobile Millennium project [@MobileMillennium], including approaches based on the reformulation of the Lighthill-Whitham-Richards model in terms of Hamilton-Jacobi equations [@BayenClaudel2010; @BayenClaudel2011], or in terms of the velocity variable [@WorkBlandinTossavainenPiccoliBayen2010]. Further examples are [@BlandinBrettiCutoloPiccoli2009; @BlandinCoqueBayen2012] and the references therein. Those projects focus on the assimilation of data, 