Have you ever wondered why after being in stop-and-go traffic for some time, you can suddenly drive at normal speed without seeing a reason for the delay? I know that my hubby and I always wondered about this question. And with the "busybodies" in Malaysian drivers, even a small incident where a car got a flat tyre or ran out of fuel will cause a massive jam, we can understand why certain narrower roads got these traffic jams. Nevertheless, we do wonder about these seemingly highways that got us stuck for no apparent reason.
“There are empirical causes for such miseries as traffic slowing to a crawl even when there is no accident or rough pavement in sight,” notes The Wall Street Journal. “Cars behave much as molecules in a gas.” Even a brief slowing down produces “a compression wave” that works its way backward, causing cars far behind to slow to a crawl. “By one estimate, three-quarters [75%] of traffic jams have no visible culprit,” says the paper. “The cause came and went hours ago, but its effects linger.” Changing routes to avoid jams may work when a city is relatively empty. But as the streets fill up and other drivers are doing the same, “you have no better chance of finding the fast road than of choosing the fastest line at the grocery checkout,” the article says. “Laid-back drivers actually fare better than drivers intently seeking out the fastest route.”
I see molecules in a gas causing a compression wave is the answer it seems. Hmm...so just go with the flow takes less time than going in a round about way. I don't know about you folks but I am much of a "go with the traffic flow type" to the chagrin of my hubby who can't or won't sit still in a traffic. He will try his level best to find alternative routes as long as the car keeps going.
“There are empirical causes for such miseries as traffic slowing to a crawl even when there is no accident or rough pavement in sight,” notes The Wall Street Journal. “Cars behave much as molecules in a gas.” Even a brief slowing down produces “a compression wave” that works its way backward, causing cars far behind to slow to a crawl. “By one estimate, three-quarters [75%] of traffic jams have no visible culprit,” says the paper. “The cause came and went hours ago, but its effects linger.” Changing routes to avoid jams may work when a city is relatively empty. But as the streets fill up and other drivers are doing the same, “you have no better chance of finding the fast road than of choosing the fastest line at the grocery checkout,” the article says. “Laid-back drivers actually fare better than drivers intently seeking out the fastest route.”
I see molecules in a gas causing a compression wave is the answer it seems. Hmm...so just go with the flow takes less time than going in a round about way. I don't know about you folks but I am much of a "go with the traffic flow type" to the chagrin of my hubby who can't or won't sit still in a traffic. He will try his level best to find alternative routes as long as the car keeps going.
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