What causes road traffic congestion?
*Inadequate road capacity; *Planning rules that cram people into towns and cities without commensurate increases in road capacity; *Greater use of cars due to the need for personal space to avoid the pressure of people of buildings when travelling in overcrowded, impersonal towns and cities; *Driver over-reaction on overcrowded roads causing a ‘wave effect’ of delay; *Overprotection of kids resulting in ‘the school run’; *Greater use of cars to justify the extra costs of ownership imposed by artificially raised vehicle excise duty (road tax); *A ‘must-have’ culture in which car ownership is seen by many as a ‘keeping up with the Joneses’ or a fashion statement; *Speed cameras that may reduce road capacity by unnecessarily reducing speed; *Failure to clear roads quickly after an accident or breakdown; *Drivers who lack confidence or ability; *A slow and cumbersome housing market that prevents some people being able to live near their work so requiring thrm to commute; *Road works; *Lack
