Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do (and What It Says About Us) Paperback – August 11, 2009

Driving is something that I've become very interested in over the past year or so, and something that I've been interested in learning more about. It's very rare that I come across a book that really challenges a lot of the perceptions that I have about something, but Tom Vanderbilt's fantastic examination of driving, Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do (And What It Says About Us) really did the trick. Traffic looks at, well, Traffic, in all of its numerous and complicated elements, and in doing so, has become a book that is absolutely essential for everyone who gets behind the wheel of an automobile, and even those who come across a road with any regularity. Vanderbilt has put together a wonderfully comprehensive, exhaustive and accessible read that explains just why we drive the way we do and what it says about us.There are several main arguments and elements of driving that Vanderbilt covers over the course of the book. The first is largely psychological, looking at the first major aspect of driving: The Driver. Without a driver, a car just sits in the driveway or a parking lot, and is for all intents and purposes, harmless. Putting a person behind the wheel subjects the car, driver and passengers to the judgment, attention and skill of the driver.Attention seems to be the most important element for the driver, and this is something that Vanderbilt tackles right away in the book. Driver error is arguably one of the leading causes of crashes, and in this day and age, there's certainly no shortage of things to distract the driver, from other cars on the road, to mobile phones that are increasingly more complicated. Vanderbilt explains that driving is an extremely complicated process, and that in order to drive around safely without crashing into anything, the brain receives and processes a lot of information - eye tracking cameras have found that a driver is looking all over the place, to the side of the road, in front of the car and ahead, all while analyzing their surroundings and making decisions accordingly that minimize the risk to the occupants. In the instance of driving, eating, talking, fiddling with the radio and so forth, the brain has to essentially divert resources and stimuli in order to properly make those actions. Drivers who look down to text on their phone take their eyes off the road while moving, which creates an incredibly dangerous situation, as the car, moving at speed, is now captained by a driver who isn't acting on their surroundings.Besides the driver looking at the road, the mentality of the drivers also comes into play. Vanderbilt describes the road as a place where a number of people who don't know each other must interact and cooperate, for the good of the system. Humans are social creatures - look to the difficulty of communicating online, where you are deprived of access of someone's voice and subsequent inflections, facial cues and so forth, and think back to the last time someone honked at you, passed aggressively, and so forth - the road is a place where numerous people come together, with a huge variety of training, habits and attitudes, and where there is virtually no feedback as to how you are doing on the road. Vanderbilt notes that just because a driver doesn't get into an accident, that doesn't necessarily mean that they aren't a poor driver - they've just been lucky. Most problems on the road stem from these relationships between drivers - miscommunications, the absence of communication and drivers not interpreting traffic correctly. As more drivers enter the road - and Vanderbilt notes that traffic is on the rise in the United States - it becomes more crucial for people to work better together while on the road.Congestion and traffic is the next major issue that is covered in the book. It is noted several times that as highways were constructed in the 1950s and 1960s, they were put together with a certain intent for capacity. In the ensuing years since these roads were constructed, the ceilings for traffic volume has shot through the roof and roads are carrying far more than they were ever intended for. Vanderbilt looks at several issues associated with this: the various ways in which traffic is dealt with, but also how some solutions are really not solutions at all. With a higher volume of vehicles on the roads, Vanderbilt notes that traffic systems have to jockey all these cars around - traffic lights and signs have been longtime elements that have managed traffic, but have severe limitations. Similarly, their very presence impacts the behavior in of cars in ways that are sometimes counter to what is good for the overall system. Traffic lights stop cars completely, which stops the vehicles behind them. Once the green light clicks on, cars go though, but there is an inherent risk there, as cars travel through a projected path of the cars to the side of the intersection. I've long been a fan of rotaries - there is one here in Montpelier, with another one just opened after a couple months of construction, and I believe that they should be put into far more widespread use, as it not only keeps traffic moving smoothly (once people get used to using them), but it keeps drivers on their toes, rather than automatically expecting that they will be safe going through an intersection.A major issue with congestion is traffic volume, and how driving impacts the rest of an overall system. Vanderbilt notes that often times, roads can handle a high number of cars, provided that there are no bottlenecks, such as accidents and slow-moving cars. He compares the system to a bucket of rice going through a funnel. A certain volume can be handled going through, but with more and more added, everything backs up. He cites one example of stop-lights that monitor the volume of an interstate, and will allow cars on accordingly, at lulls in the system, allowing traffic to move smoothly as a whole. At times, what is best for an individual driver can be harmful to the overall health of the system.With that in mind, consider that the best thing for the system as a whole is the health and well being of the driver, and in order for that to be achieved most often, drivers need to drive safely, and to be alert. Vanderbilt suggests an argument that on the face seems very counter-intuitive, but one that makes a lot of sense: In order for drivers to be safer, they need to drive in unusually unsafe conditions. Think back to the time when you drove in unfamiliar territory, or a road that was somewhat dangerous, such as a mountain road. I've done that recently, and remembered that I was more alert, a little slower, and more conscious of my surroundings. Thus, I was paying far more attention to the road, and less on what was far less important, such as my mobile phone. This argument has been tried out in various countries, where municipalities have removed road signs from the road in order to make drivers more aware of their surroundings. The result was fewer accidents, not more, as drivers were forced to pay more attention to the cars and roadside than before, where they could not assume safety in the regulations.Branching off from that argument, Vanderbilt notes that there is an increasingly seductive move to give drivers more space, more warning, and more comfort in order to take cars further apart from one another, or to give drivers more warnings about hazards. The result is that drivers feel more comfortable with their surroundings, but instead of making the road safer, it provides a sense of security that allows drivers to drive more hazardously. Top Gear, the popular BBC show, has ranted about an excess of road signs, placed in towns to mitigate liability for accidents, such as `Falling Rocks' (What am I meant to do with that information) and `Changed Priorities Ahead' (I'd been thinking that I'll be more responsible, pay off my mortgage and eat healthier, but when I saw that, I said screw it, I'll go to the pub). Similarly, cities with large numbers of bicycles and pedestrians have noted trends that follow this information: as drivers are more aware of less protected people, they tend to act accordingly. I recently read an article on a city that saw an increase in bike traffic, and rather than a rapid rise in collisions, there were fewer. The problem as I see it is that that drivers do not realize that driving is an inherently risky activity - seatbelts, airbags, crumple zones and the like give us the illusion that we are safer than we really are. To be fair, these instruments are still essential - it may make drivers feel safer, but in an accident, they will absolutely help to save people's lives.The overall effect of this book is taking a familiar activity and looking at it in an incredible amount of detail. Prior to reading this book, I had no idea of much of the information, and after reading it, I've noticed a number of bad habits with my own driving - things that I'm mindful of now that I'm going to be working to correct. At the very least, I, and I'm sure far more people, are largely unaware of how our actions impact those around us. I've gone, in my mind, from a good driver to an average one, and I'm honestly surprised that I haven't been in an accident before. It's a revelation that needs to be imparted to the rest of the driving population, simply because of one chilling statistic: every time you drive, you have a 1 in a 100 chance of dying in a car accident over the course of your lifetime. This book, in a way, is about risk-management, and examining driving in a way that helps us become more aware of the risks that we take every time we get behind the wheel of the car. Similarly, it helps to put into perspective just how traffic works. It will certainly make me more responsible, knowing the overall context the roadway.

Tom Vanderbilt’s “Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do (And What It Says About Us)” is a layman’s book on a subject we all experience daily, but rarely think deeply about: traffic and driving. Vanderbilt explores the science behind traffic from a journalist’s viewpoint. Although this is a good effort, ultimately it fails to live up to its billing.The book is typical for its type: the author traveled the country and the world to talk to experts, and wrote each chapter about one subject, using focusing on his interview with the experts. He traveled Los Angeles to discuss traffic management, India to see how chaotic traffic patterns still work, and the Netherlands to see how alternative traffic management works (especially in a society with heavy bicycle and pedestrian traffic).The book is engaging and enlightening, as Vanderbilt explains (or at least discusses) the psychology of driving, lane merging, traffic flow, the efficiency of roundabouts, etc. He explores the new minimalist approach to traffic control, which fights back at over-engineered highways with too many signs and external controls. But while Vanderbilt’s discussions are often interesting and in-depth, at times he never really answers the question posed. For example, after spending a chapter discussing “late mergers” approaching construction zones, he states with finality that late merging is more efficient – based solely on the results of one study, without squaring those results with everything else he had discussed in that chapter. I found that somewhat unfulfilling.Overall, this is a good book for anyone who has looked out at the traffic and wondered why a bottleneck forms with no apparent reason, or why perfectly normal people have a different personality behind the wheel. Unfortunately, it could have been much better – and I would give it 3 1/2 stars if I could.

Well explained in layman's terms, a review of the science behind all aspects of driving and road design, some of which I had never thought of. Read it and then give your copy to your political representative !

Very interesting book. Content-wise it's great and writing style is pretty catchy.

Guys, you need arguments against those noisy polluting ignorant bastards driving in cars and trying to knock you off your bicycle? Read this. It is an eye opener, a treasure trove and, to some extend, the bottom of Pandora's box (where the good stuff is kept). Tom Vanderbilt has put a tremendous effort into collecting data on traffic from all over the world. Extremely interesting, for motorists, pedestrians and all other taking part in the daily craze called traffic.

Great book on the urban traffic issues face everywhere in the world. Best book I have read so far on this subject.

You need this book.My feelings on landing at page 286 were of breathlessly unbuckling my 6-point safety harness in the front seat of a Mach 2.5 fighter, having been catapulted from a carrier deck, afterburnered by an expert from the navigator's seat vertically to the edge of space, plummeting to sea level to streak inverted beneath the Golden Gate bridge, rolling looping and stall-turning seamlessly through or past every nook and cranny of the subject. Time travel is thrown in: ancient Romans had our problems, too!The thorough reference notes finish on page 383 and there is a short but concise index.Reference 1 for the `Epilogue: Driving Lessons' warmed my heart: `The Isaac Newton School of Driving: Physics and your Car".I've written in a popular driving instructor magazine on this, like John Adams banging on but few listening. They're too frustrated sitting in in a stop-go tailback of their own making. They've never even watched Bill Beatty or Andrew Marr cracking the 'Phantom Blockage' on YouTube. Car radio may ease the pain but Vanterbilt points to the cures.Once I took top prize at a dry and dusty technical conference of pump manufacturers:I knew nothing of the subjects, but had been asked to write and prepare on behalf of a colleague, mugging up then presenting his work in a form intelligible to me, and attractive to a diverse audience. Tom Vanderbilt has done this for Traffic.Is it moving objects, or moving people? Traffic engineers view pedestrians as annoying grit in the machine; but `a pedestrian is someone who has just parked their car'. Do engineers abandon their humanity when they step into the office? Should we control or cajole traffic? That's why it is all so interesting.When you race through our neighbourhood at 40mph or more , please remember that WE LIVE HERE.On p 204 the traffic world shouts at the social one. That's the schizophrenia of modern society.Hamilton-Baillie is still crying in the wilderness but his time will come. Monderman died the week before a Newsnight programme promoting his ideals. Whatever happened to 'Love thy neighbour as thyself?' Locked out of the car and left behind.Vanderbilt achieved in three years the task of a lifetime for lesser mortals. It is so well written I feel I could trust him with any subject and immensely enjoy the result. It is a learned tome of worldwide research in a popular style.True to his mission, Vanderbilt does not speculate; but we can:Should a city traffic light controller be prosecuted for streamlining his wife's journey home from the shops? Is this technically feasible? Does telling commuters the whole truth about the traffic situation help or hinder optimum flow? What IS 'optimum flow' - your bicycle to work or my employers' 40-tonner speeding food to a distant supermarket? Why do traffic models fail in Beijing? Is the Delhi definition of 'defensive driving' the best, and if so, why?Now we're moving from the technical possibilities into moral debatables ......Many times I was out of my depth, but in the areas I did recognise - Risk analysis, driving and driving instruction, engineering design, safety, lifetime risk, driving overseas, psychology, local driving cultures to name a few - he hits the spot precisely with pithy perceptions and neat numbers. Those topics still over my head he has propelled me to explore further.I can't recall why I ordered this paperback; maybe an oblique reference from reading about `shared space' - which is rearing its head in our locality as a £29m Cycle Superhighway threatens to snake across Leeds. But I soon had an eerie feeling of assimilating `Traffic' before - it meshed with so much of my own thinking and experience that perhaps I had skimmed a library copy in 2008, then forgotten it. Or maybe `Great minds think alike' ..... ? It challenged more of my prejudices than it confirmed.`Risk isn't Rocket Science; it's more complicated than that.' Hitting a forest deer is safer than swerving into a nearby tree is what I teach my learners. Vanderbilt put himself through drivers' finishing school to bring us that truth and several other survival skills.Don't panic! LOOK where you need to put the car in an emergency; that will help you to a softer landing. Pre-knowledge is the key.The Guardian cover puff is enough to put anyone off, implying it is for nerds, petrolheads and cocktail party bores. Jeremy Clarkson might treat it as a joke, but if you use, regulate, control or pay for road space in any capacity, you too need this book.Sudden death or life-changing injury is only a joke in video games. It can happen to anyone on the road, anytime, however careful they are.Even a single phrase one day might literally save your life, certainly your wallet, and maybe our votes.However, since USA and UK are `two nations divided by a common language', British readers need frequently to translate `left turn' into `right turn' (or `lane') to appreciate fully the safety implications.After the Bible, the Highway Code, and (maybe) Shakespeare, Vanderbilt is a 'must have'.