The return from the Spring Festival: deep thinking under the phenomenon of traffic jams.
Every Spring Festival, countless wanderers embark on the journey home. However, this year's Spring Festival home seems to be particularly bumpy, and some people even took a full six days to reach their destination, and half of the holiday time is lost in the wheel. While others have begun to enjoy the joy of reunion, some are still anxiously staring at the endless traffic ahead. The parents on the other end are no longer concerned about daily trivialities, but "Are you blocked now?" ”
In the face of such congestion every year, we can't help but ask: why are the roads repaired every year, but still so badly congested? The highway is so long, why can't it accommodate vehicles during the Spring Festival? Was the first car blocked in traffic just a simple accident?
In fact, the traffic jam during the Spring Festival is often closely related to external factors. In addition to common causes such as weather and accidents, sudden transportation demand, road repair projects, etc., can exacerbate road congestion. Taking the 100-kilometer traffic jam on the Beijing-Tibet Expressway more than ten years ago as an example, due to the sudden demand for coal transportation, a large number of trucks poured into this route, coupled with the superposition of factors such as road construction and traffic accidents, resulting in a traffic jam of the century, and some people spent more than 20 days on the road.
However, this is not always the case with traffic jams on a daily basis. Sometimes, even without the interference of bad weather and traffic accidents, there will still be inexplicable congestion on highways or elevated highways. This phenomenon, known as "ghost traffic jams", is actually closely related to the behavior of drivers. When the driver's speed is inconsistent and the driving is unstable, a small disturbance can cause a large congestion. In addition, factors such as anxious drivers constantly changing lanes and delayed reaction times for acceleration and deceleration can also exacerbate road congestion.
In order to uncover the truth about the phenomenon of "ghost traffic jams", researchers at Nagoya University conducted a unique experiment. They kept the vehicles moving at a constant speed and distance, but over time the otherwise smooth traffic flow gradually fluctuated, and congestion inevitably occurred. This proves once again that congestion is closely related to the tacit understanding between drivers. When there is a lack of tacit understanding between drivers, small disturbances can be amplified and eventually lead to severe congestion.
So in this era of intelligence, can we use the power of technology to solve this problem? Unfortunately, current intelligent driving technology is more about mimicking human behavior than creating new logic that surpasses us. Some overly aggressive smart driving strategies may even exacerbate road congestion. Moreover, it will take a long time to achieve comprehensive intelligent driving coverage and technological breakthroughs.
Faced with such a dilemma, should we consider building more roads to alleviate congestion? Dangs's Law, however, poured cold water on us. It tells us that simply increasing the supply of roads will not solve the problem of congestion at its root. Because from the perspective of economics, everything is equilibrium. If driving becomes too convenient, then what's the point of other means of transportation? After all, the comfort of sitting in a car is unmatched by other modes of public transportation. From an economic point of view, the choice of mode of transportation is also the result of equilibrium. If driving is too convenient, how will the competitiveness of public transportation such as high-speed rail, planes and even buses be reflected? After all, the experience of sitting in a car is often difficult to compare to other modes of transportation.
Therefore, the real solution may not be to build more roads, but to better manage and use existing road resources. This requires the joint efforts of us, businesses and individuals to improve the attractiveness of public transport, promote green travel modes, optimize traffic management and other aspects. Only in this way can we make the journey home smoother and more welcoming.
In addition, we need to think deeply about how to improve the tacit understanding between drivers to reduce the occurrence of "ghost traffic jams". This can be achieved by strengthening driving training, improving the quality and awareness of drivers, etc. When drivers can form a better tacit understanding with each other, the traffic efficiency of the road will also be effectively improved.
Looking back at the full text, we can see that the phenomenon of traffic congestion is not simply caused by the lack of road supply, but the result of a combination of factors. Therefore, we need to look at the solution from multiple angles. And in this process, everyone's efforts are indispensable. Only by working together can the road home be no longer bumpy and long.
Finally, I leave the reader with a question: what do you think is the most effective solution when facing the traffic jam on the way home from the Spring Festival? Looking forward to everyone's comments and **.