How does a traffic jam occur? The simple answer would be - because of too many cars. But it's not that simple...
You fall into traffic jam and, when it uncorks and you step back a little, you realize that there was no real "cork". No traffic lights, no road works or accidents.
So, where did it get stuck?
The phenomenon is called "phantom stall" and has only been explored to some extent in recent years.
In his master's thesis at the University of Graz, Matthias Eduard Primas determined that the reason lies in the non-respect of the distance and the large differences in the speed at which the vehicles move.
Maniacs and troublemakers
Our eyes catch those who run like maniacs on the road, but also those who bother unnecessarily.
When the first ones come across the others, then they brake suddenly. And since many drivers are not used to braking in time, then every next car brakes a little later and a little harder. Sometimes someone behind in the queue can no longer just slow down, but has to stop completely.
And whoop, there's a stop with the butterfly effect.
The congestion is spreading at a speed of 15 kilometers per hour. This means that, if there are enough vehicles on the highway, within an hour of the first braking the column can be as long as 15 kilometers!
If everyone then needs a second or two to start, those behind have to wait.
Until they put us all in the so-called smart vehicles that communicate with each other via the internet and brake and accelerate synchronously would obviously help everyone move at the same speed.
So, without sudden acceleration and braking.
Impossible distance
Half the speed expressed in meters is taken as a "safe distance" - enough to brake in time, if necessary. If you drive one hundred per hour, then fifty meters of distance.
But, as Pekić would say, the problem with ideal solutions is only that they are impossible.
In this case, it's not only because some drivers have short legs and are always in a hurry, honking and cursing, nor because some drive too slowly out of fear. But because we are only human.
Physicist Yuki Sugiyama from Nagoya University decided to prove the matter practically. He had the students drive on a 230-meter-long circular track, and asked everyone to drive exactly 30 minutes per hour.
When there were 21 vehicles or less in the circle, everything went like clockwork. But when the 22nd vehicle is added, it quickly becomes crowded. Because people are not robots. It is enough for someone to accidentally speed up or slow down just a shade and that's it.
When the traffic density increases critically, a standstill is only a matter of time even with considerate and good drivers, let alone with us as we are.
Whichever way you turn, it would be less crowded if there were fewer cars. Well, that's not a scientific knowledge.
This topic was first published in our newsletter Medjuvreme. Sign up for free here.
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