Seminar, 18 June 2013, M. Schreckenberg

18 June 2013, 16:15
Carl-Zeiss-Str. 3, seminar room 309

The mystery of congestion and jams
New perspectives from traffic science

Prof. Dr. Michael Schreckenberg (Faculty of Physics, University Duisburg-Essen)

Since more than fifty years scientists try to understand the phenomenon of the “jam out of the blue”. Without any visible reason the speed suddenly breaks (‘brakes’) down and only stop-and-go motion is possible. In the meantime many mysteries of the traffic break down are quite well understood but there remain some important unsolved questions.

Of special interest is the future development of traffic against the background of changing energy supply. Is electro-mobility a realistic alternative? How we will get around in fifty years? There are many forecasts but do they meet the point?

In addition every driver develops his own theories and strategies in order to optimize his own behavior. With information, telematics and navigation the drivers try to avoid jams. But often this results in new disadvantages. The talk tries to shed light on the current status of the research in this field and discusses possible scenarios for the future.