traffic management

The days of engineers simply figuring out the most efficient way to control the flow of traffic are long gone. Apps influence the decision-making process of drivers so greatly that engineers must now take into account how the likes of Google Maps and Waze will alter traffic congestion on non-major...Read More»

Brexit be damned. In an effort to comply with European Union pollution regulations, London says that later this year it will begin levying a £10 (about $12.50) charge on older cars if they want to drive in the city's core. Though not an outright ban on cars, the fee is a step toward creating...Read More»

Look at Google's adorable autonomous car up there. Isn't it cute? It looks as harmless as a wireless mouse or a koala wearing a fez. Precious. But do not be deceived, dear reader, for verily, that vile contraption is a harbinger of doom and destruction. It will unleash hell on Planet Earth, causing...Read More»

No one likes red-light cameras. It's not just that they're automated, soulless hall monitors. It's not just that they're operated by semi-sleazy third parties that keep a big chunk of ticket revenue. It's also the fact that they seem like desperate ploys for cash. How much cash? In Chicago...Read More»

Look out the window. Are the roads in your city/town/hamlet clogged with traffic? Have they been that way for the past several decades? Do you wonder if things ever get better? New York University's Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management knows the answers to the first two questions...Read More»

When it comes to predicting and tracking traffic trends, INRIX is the go-to authority. The company says that traffic congestion surged in 2013, growing over three times as fast as the U.S. economy. According to INRIX, traffic in the U.S. reversed two consecutive years of declines with a six percent...Read More»

Drivers see warning signs all the time, but we don't always heed their advice: "Slow Curve". "Watch for Falling Rock". "Yield". However, a very simple message posted to an electronic sign in Arlington, Virginia is having a much bigger impact. It reads, "Don't hit the car in front of you", and...Read More»

For those who hate heavy traffic -- and really, who doesn't? -- we've got some very bad news. According to the U.S. Travel Association, America's roads are clogging fast, and within the next couple of decades, some areas of the country could see congestion on par with Labor Day traffic all year...Read More»

Do you live in Florida? Have you received a ticket from a red-light camera lately? There may be a reason for that: according to Tampa's CBS affiliate WTSP, the state recently shortened the legal length for yellow lights. That's caused a surge in red-light citations -- and proved beneficial for...Read More»

Is it just us, or does roadway construction seem like an exercise in futility? How many times have you seen crews pack up after adding an extra lane of highway, leaving the road just as clogged as it was before? Couldn't the team have added two lanes (or three), just to save time down the line?...Read More»

Commuters: Honda feels your pain. Even better: Honda hopes to alleviate that pain with new software designed to reduce traffic congestion. What's interesting about this project is that Honda hasn't simply riffed on existing traffic management programs like those we've seen from Inrix and TomTom...Read More»

Critics of traffic cameras have something to celebrate: a judge in Ohio has declared the devices "a scam" and insisted that one tiny town must turn them off. To call traffic cameras "controversial" would be an understatement. Organizations like the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and the...Read More»

Traffic cameras have been in use since 1969, but they weren't deployed in large numbers until the 1990s. Now that they've become commonplace around the globe -- catching speeders and nailing red-light-runners -- some drivers are calling for their removal. But one person has taken a slightly...Read More»

If you live in Southern California, you probably remember Carmageddon -- not the video game, not the pet name that some gave to the 2008/2009 auto industry bailout, but the closure of the 405, one of Los Angeles' busiest highways. Now, it's happening again, and once again, residents are concerned...Read More»

By now, the travails of Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY)--and the photo of a bulging male crotch in gray underwear that may or may not be his, which he may or may not have Tweeted to a young woman--are far too well known. This article is not about that. It's an editorial to express our disappointment at...Read More»

For the past several years, traffic researchers had noticed an unusual trend: declining congestion in metropolitan areas. Not surprisingly, the slide began in 2008 -- around the time that much of the world was hit with a double-wallop of recession and soaring gas prices. But now that national...Read More»

The great freeway battles of the Sixties and Seventies are over. It's safe to say few new freeways will be punched through existing neighborhoods. But transportation engineers are still busily at work updating and improving existing roads, generally by widening them, adding lanes, smoothing curves...Read More»

Over the past few years, we've seen traffic cameras deployed in a growing number of cities across the U.S. (We wouldn't be surprised if the trend were tied to our struggling economy, since cams promise to generate a fair amount of dough.) But although the cameras have a number of fans, they've also...Read More»