Arthur Charpentier ⏚ 🇨🇦 🇯🇵Apr 23, 2023
"The concept is called induced demand, which is economist-speak for when increasing the supply of something (like roads) makes people want that thing even more. Though some traffic engineers made note of this phenomenon at least as early as the 1960s, it is only in recent years that social scientists have collected enough data to show how this happens pretty much every time we build new roads." https://www.wired.com/2014/06/wuwt-traffic-induced-demand/
What's Up With That: Building Bigger Roads Actually Makes Traffic Worse

The concept is called induced demand, which is economist-speak for when increasing the supply of something (like roads) makes people want that thing even more. Though some traffic engineers made note of this phenomenon at least as early as the 1960s, it is only in recent years that social scientists have collected enough data to show how this happens pretty much every time we build new roads.

WIRED
Show threadDavid J. Atkinson
@freakonometrics I used to live in the CA SF Bay Area. The commuting #traffic is horrible. 45 minutes to go 10 miles. I participated in a strategic planning study for the Bay Area transportation organizations. Nobody knew about “induced demand.” I told them to tear up two lanes of highway into Silicon Valley. As expected, this was not received well. I wish I had a pic. Ha! They thought I was nuts but it is really their inability to think themselves out of the box they are in.
Apr 24, 2023 at 12:16amWeb