What Causes Traffic?

Have you ever wondered how many hours you've spent sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffi­c? According to the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) at Texas A&M University, you might spend as much as two weeks in your car each year. So what causes traffic?

As the first car stops, the following cars must also stop. Even when the first car begins to move again, additional approaching cars have to stop farther down the road, and the congested area travels backward in a wave until traffic is light enough for it to dissipate.

Assuming construction, accidents, and stalled vehicles aren't to blame, it's likely due to more cars entering the highway than leaving it. As more cars enter a crowded road, drivers have to use their brakes to avoid collisions, creating a traffic wave. A traffic wave occurs when cars slow down, and the slowing trend continues backward -- like a domino effect. As long as there are more cars approaching from behind, the traffic congestion travels in a wave.

As space opens up ahead of your car, you can accelerate and escape the congestion. The person behind you can accelerate a few moments later, and the person behind them a few moments after that. The congestion doesn't immediately clear up -- it continues to shift slowly back down the highway. Congestion can clear if traffic becomes light enough to stop the traffic-wave effect.