Saturday, 20 December 2014

FESTIVE MONTH OF CHRISTMAS, HIGH TRAFFIC VS TRAFFLINE

Christmas or Christmas Day (Old EnglishCrīstesmæsse, meaning "Christ's Mass") is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ,[6][7] observed generally on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world.[2][10][11] A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, it closes the Advent season and initiates thetwelve days of Christmastide, which ends after the twelfth night.[12][13] Christmas is a public holiday in many of the world's nations is celebrated culturally by a large number of non-Christian people, and is an integral part of theChristmas and holiday season.
Traffic congestion is a condition on road networks that occurs as use increases, and is characterized by slower speeds, longer trip times, and increased vehicular queueing. The most common example is the physical use of roads by vehicles. When traffic demand is great enough that the interaction between vehicles slows the speed of the traffic stream, this results in some congestion.
As demand approaches the capacity of a road (or of the intersections along the road), extreme traffic congestion sets in. When vehicles are fully stopped for periods of time, this is colloquially known as a traffic jam or traffic snarl-up. Traffic congestion can lead to drivers becoming frustrated and engaging in road rage.

Causes


Traffic research still cannot fully predict under which conditions a "traffic jam" (as opposed to heavy, but smoothly flowing traffic) may suddenly occur. It has been found that individual incidents (such as accidents or even a single car braking heavily in a previously smooth flow) may cause ripple effects (a 
cascading failure) which then spread out and create a sustained traffic jam when, otherwise, normal flow might have continued for some time longer.[3]Traffic congestion occurs when a volume of traffic or modal split generates demand for space greater than the available road capacity; this point is commonly termed saturation. There are a number of specific circumstances which cause or aggravate congestion; most of them reduce the capacity of a road at a given point or over a certain length, or increase the number of vehicles required for a given volume of people or goods. About half of U.S. traffic congestion is recurring, and is attributed to sheer weight of traffic; most of the rest is attributed to traffic incidents, road work and weather events.


Negative impacts

Traffic congestion has a number of negative effects:
  • Wasting time of motorists and passengers ("opportunity cost"). As a non-productive activity for most people, congestion reduces regional economic health.
  • Delays, which may result in late arrival for employment, meetings, and education, resulting in lost business, disciplinary action or other personal losses.
  • Inability to forecast travel time accurately, leading to drivers allocating more time to travel "just in case", and less time on productive activities.
  • Wasted fuel increasing air pollution and carbon dioxide emissions owing to increased idling, acceleration and braking.
  • Wear and tear on vehicles as a result of idling in traffic and frequent acceleration and braking, leading to more frequent repairs and replacements.
  • Stressed and frustrated motorists, encouraging road rage and reduced health of motorists
  • Emergencies: blocked traffic may interfere with the passage of emergency vehicles traveling to their destinations where they are urgently needed.
  • Spillover effect from congested main arteries to secondary roads and side streets as alternative routes are attempted ('rat running'), which may affect neighborhood amenityand real estate prices.
  • Higher chance of collisions due to tight spacing and constant stopping-and-going.

Traffic management using TRAFFLINE  APP


Traffic reporting
, via radio, GPS and mobile apps, to advise road usersUse of so-called Intelligent transportation system, which guide traffic:

Other associated

  • School opening times arranged to avoid rush hour traffic (in some countries, private car school pickup and drop-off traffic are substantial percentages of peak hour traffic).[citation needed]
  • Considerate driving behaviour promotion and enforcement. Driving practices such as tailgating and frequent lane changes can reduce a road's capacity and exacerbate jams. In some countries signs are placed on highways to raise awareness, while others have introduced legislation against inconsiderate driving.
  • Visual barriers to prevent drivers from slowing down out of curiosity (often called "rubbernecking" in the United States). This often includes accidents, with traffic slowing down even on roadsides physically separated from the crash location. This also tends to occur at construction sites, which is why some countries have introduced rules that motorway construction has to occur behind visual barrier
  • Speed limit reductions, as practiced on the M25 motorway in London. With lower speeds allowing cars to drive closer together, this increases the capacity of a road. Note that this measure is only effective if the interval between cars is reduced, not the distance itself. Low intervals are generally only safe at low speeds.
  • Lane splitting/filtering, in which some jurisdictions allow motorcyclesscooters and bicycles to travel in the space between cars, buses, and trucks.

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