An urban traffic system is a heterogeneous system, which consists of different types of intersections and dynamics. In this paper, we focus on one type of heterogeneous traffic network, which consists of signalized intersections and non-signalized ones, where in the latter case vehicles usually follow the first-come-first-serve (FCFS) principle. We propose a novel model describing the dynamic behaviors of such a system and validate it via simulations in VISSIM. Upon such a new model, a signal control problem for a heterogeneous traffic network is formulated as a mixed integer programming problem. Comparisons between a homogeneous traffic system and a heterogeneous one are provided, which leaves the door open for developing a systematic planning approach on deciding what traffic intersections require signal control to ensure a good traffic control performance, thus, have a great social and economic potentials, considering that it is rather expensive to introduce signal control in an urban area.
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