By Megan Treacy / Source: TreeHugger

A new algorithm developed by researchers at MIT greatly improves upon existing traffic systems that cities currently have in place and could lead to a future with no traffic jams, better fuel economy for cars, buses and other vehicles and, as a result, less air pollution.

The system uses both city-level data and individual driver data to create traffic light patterns that keep traffic moving. Right now, traffic systems in cities mainly focus on major roads and intersections. That leaves out important information like how drivers behave when traffic jams occur. If drivers take alternate routes, that affects the flow on other roads where new jams can happen without smart traffic systems extending to them as well.

“What we do,” Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering Carolina Osorio says, “is develop algorithms that allow major transportation agencies to use high-resolution models of traffic to solve optimization problems.”

MIT reports, “Typically, such timing determinations are set to optimize travel times along selected major arteries, but are not sophisticated enough to take into account the complex interactions among all streets in a city. In addition, current models do not assess the mix of vehicles on the road at a given time—so they can’t predict how changes in traffic flow may affect overall fuel use and emissions.”

Read more @ TreeHugger