Chapter 26: Traffic Monitoring Using GPS

Traffic congestion has become a critical problem worldwide in many urban areas. For example, consider the USA. According to Schrank and Lomax (2002), 65% of the peak period person-kilometers traveled on US freeways in 2000 were under congested conditions. By comparison, the same percentage was 30% in 1982, and 52% in 1990. The corresponding percentages for principal US arterial roads were very similar. The total cost of congestion in 75 major urban areas in the USA – only including the effects of wasted time and fuel consumption – was about US $68 billion, or US $1160 per road traveler, in 2000.