Optimizing Server Locations in Spatial Queues: Parametric and Nonparametric Bayesian Optimization

Abstract

This paper presents a new model for solving the optimal server location problem in a spatial hypercube queueing model. Unlike deterministic location models, our approach accounts for server availability, varying utilization levels, and dependencies across servers. We prove that the problem is NP-hard and establish lower and upper bounds, as well as asymptotic results, by relating it to special cases of the classical $p$-Median problem. To address the computational challenge, we propose two Bayesian optimization approaches: (i) a parametric approach based on a sparse Bayesian linear model with second-order interactions, and (ii) a nonparametric approach using a Gaussian process surrogate with the $p$-Median objective as the prior mean function. We prove that both methods achieve sublinear regret and converge to the optimal solution. Numerical experiments and a case study using real-world data from the St. Paul, Minnesota, emergency response system show that our approaches consistently identify optimal solutions and outperform all baseline methods.