The End of Traffic and the Future of Access: Roadmap to the New Transport Landscape

by David M. Levinson

Traffic signals were first installed in Cleveland in 1914, and there are more than 300,000 traffic signals now operating in North America, affecting most daily trips. While great progress has been made in terms of passenger safety and road efficiency by this technique, there are still some limitations. Improperly operated traffic signals cause excessive delays that sacrifice productivity, waste fuel, and pollute the air. While side collisions are reduced, rear-end collisions are increased at signalized intersections. Dissatisfaction in intersection operation has become a serious problem faced by traffic operator. Traffic signals suffer from improper settings, delayed maintenance, and malfunctions. The television show Portlandia satirizes this in the skit "Is the Chicken Local?" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErRHJlE4PGI (The Chicken was named Colin).

Traffic intersection history