Last week, we talked about how science has come up with a name and a possible excuse for road rage, and now science has figured out why there are traffic jams.
Most of us assume it?s that old chestnut, “too many cars and too few lanes,” but that?s only a partial answer.
A physicist at the University of Michigan calls it the science of complexity. Craig Davis tells LiveScience.com: “In large group dynamics, special things happen, because each individual is trying to maximize their own benefit.”
We?ve all seen it happen: A car in front of you does something odd or there?s a broken-down car on the shoulder. Most drivers will respond by hitting the brakes. That makes the next driver brake and the one behind him and the one behind him and so on. Soon, the highway is a sea of flashing red brake lights that extends for miles.
It takes most people three-quarters of a second to slam on the brake pedal. Drivers who are talking on their cell phones have response times that are even slower. According to Davis, the delayed reaction creates instability in an otherwise steady stream of traffic, and that?s when we end up with bumper-to-bumper congestion.
This all sounds like little more than theory, but it?s the kind of observation that can lead to improvements. This kind of thinking leads companies to work on the development of adaptive cruise control. These systems are being tested in laboratories and eliminate the reaction time by allowing the vehicle to do some of the work. No, it hasn?t yet been tested in the real world, but it seems to make a lot of sense.
More lanes for I-95?
Maryland officials are looking into adding two lanes to Interstate 95 in each direction between Baltimore and the Delaware line.
Under the most popular scenario being proposed, these would be express toll lanes where the toll would be paid at highway speeds via the E-ZPass system.
My only question is what happens when all six of those lanes heading northbound get above mile marker 109 where Delaware begins and where there are only four lanes.
It seems bad enough when you hit the step down from 65 mph to 55 mph.
This 16-mile stretch might also give Maryland a chance to test the concept of managed toll lanes that are to be used in other parts of the state.
It all sounds like something worth pursuing, but those extra lanes may do little more than create a bottleneck.
Questions, comments, random musings? Write to [email protected].
