4 ms·

I've studied this problem for 30 years. The short answer is not enough following distance to the car in front of you. That distance represents a time-space bu

I've studied this problem for 30 years. The short answer is not enough following distance to the car in front of you. That distance represents a time-space buffer. The time-space buffer allows for local variations in speed without collisions AND without reducing speed to zero.

voisin 2y ago
Couldn’t we require manufacturers to add something that annoys the driver if they are too close to the driver ahead of them? An anti-tailgating alarm that can’t be disabled or something along those lines? I am not big on regulation, but I can think of fewer things that could be more impactful to the average person than the elimination of traffic jams.
- Zenzero 2y ago
  Just a proximity sensor that cuts off the music and plays a repetitive tone if you are too close while traveling above 20mph should be enough.
- genewitch 2y ago
  you want to solve this you give a monetary benefit to people who traffic break, a methodology of driving to create buffers in "time-space" that remove brake lights from areas and allow the flow to speed up. Merely having an annoying alarm won't do it, if anything, i figure it would cause more road rage, because it's something that feels like its out of your control. My 2023 subaru has adaptive cruise control, and you can set the follow distance, and even the furthest follow distance feels too close in traffic. When i would do traffic breaking while driving rush hour in Los Angeles county, i'd maintain 3 car lengths whenever possible between me and the car in front, for example. The best place to traffic break is in the "slow lanes", if you have enough people doing it the ingress/egress traffic can merge without causing issues and more efficiently, which eases traffic. The second place traffic breaking helps immensely is when there's interchanges to other freeways, you traffic break in the lane that "ends" for the other direction, so that people who wait until the last minute for whatever reason don't have to cut anyone off to merge which reduces the brake lights in that area. i don't have any videos of me doing this, as "dash cams" weren't really a thing when i was doing it in L.A.; i suppose i could record some video the next time i'm in a populated area like DFW or NOLA
- WarOnPrivacy 2y ago
  > Couldn’t we require manufacturers to add something that annoys the driver if they are too close to the driver ahead of them? I'm in a state where it's a violation to not exit the passing lane if a vehicle behind is overtaking you. Lets add alarms for non and hostile compliance.
WarOnPrivacy 2y ago
> The short answer is not enough following distance to the car in front of you. I don't doubt your expertise or qualifications. I do however wonder if your conclusion factors in realty. Specifically where the buffer endless gets filled by one vehicle after another merging into it. A high % of the new arrivals barely pass (or don't) the vehicle they wanted to get by, converting the passing lane into not-that.
- supportengineer 2y ago
  People would have to change their behavior from a selfish mindset to a more collectivist mindset. As someone else said, they will need an incentive to do this - either a carrot or a stick. The current "stick" - wasting time and fuel - is not working.
  - WarOnPrivacy 2y ago
    > People would have to change their behavior from a selfish mindset to a more collectivist mindset. My private fantasy is that self-driving would introduce this. However, auto manufacturers wield selfish interests like a superpower. I doubt anything like benevolence could escape into their product lines.
krackers 2y ago
As explained by William Beaty (of amasci fame): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGFqfTCL2fs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGFqfTCL2fs
barbegal 2y ago
That may be the reason for sudden traffic jams but it isn't the reason for traffic in general. Leaving more distance reduces throughput and necessarily creates congestion further back.
apple4ever 2y ago
I think it's more the failure to start driving soon enough and fast enough. People wait and wait and then go and then go slowly, instead of moving as soon as possible and faster. That adds up over the course of many cars. I see it every time I get to the area of slowdown (like one lane into two lanes). People just go slooooooow there.

voisin 2y ago

Couldn’t we require manufacturers to add something that annoys the driver if they are too close to the driver ahead of them? An anti-tailgating alarm that can’t be disabled or something along those lines? I am not big on regulation, but I can think of fewer things that could be more impactful to the average person than the elimination of traffic jams.

Zenzero 2y ago
Just a proximity sensor that cuts off the music and plays a repetitive tone if you are too close while traveling above 20mph should be enough.
genewitch 2y ago
you want to solve this you give a monetary benefit to people who traffic break, a methodology of driving to create buffers in "time-space" that remove brake lights from areas and allow the flow to speed up. Merely having an annoying alarm won't do it, if anything, i figure it would cause more road rage, because it's something that feels like its out of your control. My 2023 subaru has adaptive cruise control, and you can set the follow distance, and even the furthest follow distance feels too close in traffic. When i would do traffic breaking while driving rush hour in Los Angeles county, i'd maintain 3 car lengths whenever possible between me and the car in front, for example. The best place to traffic break is in the "slow lanes", if you have enough people doing it the ingress/egress traffic can merge without causing issues and more efficiently, which eases traffic. The second place traffic breaking helps immensely is when there's interchanges to other freeways, you traffic break in the lane that "ends" for the other direction, so that people who wait until the last minute for whatever reason don't have to cut anyone off to merge which reduces the brake lights in that area. i don't have any videos of me doing this, as "dash cams" weren't really a thing when i was doing it in L.A.; i suppose i could record some video the next time i'm in a populated area like DFW or NOLA
WarOnPrivacy 2y ago
> Couldn’t we require manufacturers to add something that annoys the driver if they are too close to the driver ahead of them? I'm in a state where it's a violation to not exit the passing lane if a vehicle behind is overtaking you. Lets add alarms for non and hostile compliance.

WarOnPrivacy 2y ago

> The short answer is not enough following distance to the car in front of you. I don't doubt your expertise or qualifications. I do however wonder if your conclusion factors in realty. Specifically where the buffer endless gets filled by one vehicle after another merging into it. A high % of the new arrivals barely pass (or don't) the vehicle they wanted to get by, converting the passing lane into not-that.

supportengineer 2y ago
People would have to change their behavior from a selfish mindset to a more collectivist mindset. As someone else said, they will need an incentive to do this - either a carrot or a stick. The current "stick" - wasting time and fuel - is not working.
- WarOnPrivacy 2y ago
  > People would have to change their behavior from a selfish mindset to a more collectivist mindset. My private fantasy is that self-driving would introduce this. However, auto manufacturers wield selfish interests like a superpower. I doubt anything like benevolence could escape into their product lines.

krackers 2y ago

As explained by William Beaty (of amasci fame): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGFqfTCL2fs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGFqfTCL2fs

barbegal 2y ago

That may be the reason for sudden traffic jams but it isn't the reason for traffic in general. Leaving more distance reduces throughput and necessarily creates congestion further back.

apple4ever 2y ago

I think it's more the failure to start driving soon enough and fast enough. People wait and wait and then go and then go slowly, instead of moving as soon as possible and faster. That adds up over the course of many cars. I see it every time I get to the area of slowdown (like one lane into two lanes). People just go slooooooow there.