It gets applied to roads because people keep trying to “solve” traffic without pricing roads. Nobody likes being stuck in traffic, but unfortunately it seems mo

It gets applied to roads because people keep trying to “solve” traffic without pricing roads. Nobody likes being stuck in traffic, but unfortunately it seems most people are also angrily opposed to tolls which would balance supply and demand and allow roads to flow smoothly (for those willing to pay). There’s a faction of people who _swear_ that if we just built one more highway we’ll _solve_ traffic. That’s who the “induced demand” argument is aimed at. To your broader point, all services work like this to a point; if you first suppose there’s insufficient supply to meet demand, then adding supply can induce more demand. There’s an eventual saturation point for everything though. Tear down all the buildings downtown and replace them with parking lots. There will be plenty of unused parking and no more rush hour as there’s no longer a reason to go downtown.