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SUBJECTS › TRANSPORTATION › Congestion Management
Published 05/07

Congestion Management

Contents

Introduction

In some respects, congestion is a sign of success. Streets and roads tend to be congested in places that are attractive to people and that enjoy economic prosperity. As Anthony Downs observes (in his article below) the root of the problem is that "too many people want to move at the same times each day." They do so because "efficient operation of both the economy and school systems requires that people work, go to school, and even run errands during about the same hours so they can interact with each other." As a result, we may always need to live with some degree of congestion, particularly in our urban areas.

Even, so, the attraction dissipates when the lines become too long. Excessive traffic congestion has significant costs such as lost time, driver stress, vehicle costs and elevated pollution. In recent years, congestion consistently surfaces on or near the top of lists of major issues facing Washington State residents.

Several basic types of strategies may be combined to reduce traffic congestion. Past practice relied primarily on adding road capacity to address traffic congestion. There is increasing evidence that few regions will ever be able to afford construction of sufficient road lanes to "solve" the peak hour congestion problem. Adding capacity to other transportation systems (alternative transportation modes such as transit, rail, bicycle and pedestrian networks or ferries) can relieve some of the pressure on badly congested roads, while providing transportation choices. Another major category of strategies is focused on increasing the efficiency of the existing system (transportation systems management). For example, improved traffic signalization or incident management can reduce delays. A forth set of strategies focuses on influencing travelers' behavior to use transportation systems in a way that contributes less to congestion, for instance, providing incentives to travel during non-peak travel periods (transportation demand management). In addition, land use planning and development patterns can have a significant impact on the level of traffic congestion, when it results in shorter travel distances.

This web page organizes information on a variety of approaches to reduce traffic congestion. It will direct you to pages where you will find more information on each approach. An effective congestion reduction program will employ a combination of these strategies.

General Information - Congestion Management