How bad has traffic congestion in America become?
As described at the beginning of this article, ORNL Center for Transportation Analysis researchers Patricia Hu and Jennifer Young gather statistics that tell of a day-long urban traffic jam where pedestrians have become about as obsolete as the horse. They published their analysis of findings from a U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) survey in the 1990 Nationwide Personal Transportation Survey. DOT collected data for a 1995 study, Hu says, and she’s pretty confident that the number of cars and drivers on the road will show a continued increase. Hu and Young’s report brings to the surface a number of interesting developments in the activities of American drivers, and in American culture itself. The rate of increase in the number of U.S. licensed drivers from 1983 to 1990, for instance, was double the rate of population growth. The high rate is attributed to more women in the work force and more women who drive. The surge in traffic between the morning and afternoon rush hours, Hu s
