The excess of cars in a given section is a physical issue, which can be described numerically by the number of units that coincide in a specific space and time… but also, by a psychological issue. If not, take a look at this: the DGT discovers what is the accordion effect that causes big traffic jams… and how to avoid it.
According to Traffic, many traffic jams take place due to a chain reaction that would occur when there was something on the road that caused traffic to slow down, but later, by not taking this effect into account, the waiting time would accumulate in the vehicle. vehicle until the traffic jam was much larger than strictly necessary.
Thus, after stopping or braking, “circulation resumes with more delay the further back you are in the row. After starting the first car, the second takes an extra second; the third adds another second to the previous one (1 + 1) and so on… The visual effect is that the line of vehicles stretches like an accordion”, points out the DGT.
“For example, in a line of 2,000 cars – which is 12 to 16 kilometers long – the last vehicle would take up to 30 minutes to start,” he continues on social networks and in his publication ‘Revista de Tráfico’. “If you are not careful, it takes longer than it should to start, and the drivers behind in the hold see the waiting time multiplied,” she warns.
After stopping or braking, traffic resumes with more delay the further back you are in the queue. The visual effect is that the line of vehicles stretches like an accordion🚗 🚕 🚙 🚗. Learn why and how to avoid it.👉https://t.co/AQyZtwdxgY#ZeroRisks pic.twitter.com/nrOsikJTq1
— Director General Traffic (@DGTes) May 24, 2022
How to avoid it? The DGT, immediately after discovering to many users what this ‘accordion effect’ that causes large traffic jams is, advocates preventive and anticipatory driving, so that the negative effects of a retention are minimized or even annulled: keep the safety distance, observe the situation and react sufficiently in advance.
In addition, he continues, “waiting for the last moment to brake causes screeching”. Therefore, it recommends taking your foot off the accelerator and slowing down smoothly (even with a touch of the brakes to warn the rest), because “the disparity in speed favors the accordion effect, while a homogeneous speed among those who share the road increases the fluency,” he concludes.
