Researchers in Europe are experimenting with a new kind of traffic light that better responds to traffic by monitoring the actual amount of cars on the road and estimating how long lights should stay green.
"Stefan Lämmer at the Dresden University of Technology and Dirk Helbing of ETH Zurich made a computer model of Dresden's roads, in which the traffic streams flowed and merged not unlike water going through pipes. They then equipped the virtual traffic lights on those roads with sensors that monitored the local traffic flow. Using this input, each light calculated the expected number of immediately oncoming vehicles, and figured out how long it would have to stay green in order to let that traffic through."
The researchers found that these "self-regulating" traffic lights could reduce the amount of time spent waiting at traffic signals by 10%-30%.
FULL STORY: Self-regulating traffic lights would improve vehicle flow
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City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research