Case Study: How to mitigate traffic congestion based on Ant algorithm & Coordination differences between ants and humans.
By using ant’s algorithm, the traffic problem can be solved.
Traffic Motion
Suppose you had noticed that ants never get caught up in their traffic. It’s their behavior that prevents their trails from becoming congested, and we can apply the same behavior to help solve the congestion on our road networks.
To improve our system of communication between drivers & cars?
If humans would let a network take the wheel, these principles might manage our congested traffic. We should hand over control of the vehicle to a collectively intelligent system that would move all vehicles from their source to destination, or they should inform every incident of their upcoming route. With this data's help, accidents would be virtually non-exist, and travel would become more efficient.
By using ant’s algorithm, the traffic problem can be solved.
The ants never overtake their trails. Instead, they form into platoons in which all ants move at the same speed. Increase the density of ant traffic, and the platoons join together to form larger groups. This is how the velocity remains the same while the density increases.
Ants Follow- The co-operative genetic programming that underlies their awesome traffic systems.
Humans will never drive precisely.
Observations: 1
Traffic — During Office Hours
The more people can share a single vehicle, the fewer individual vehicles on the road, reducing traffic volumes. Most of the cars only have one person in them. One person taking up 15 or 20 feet of space on the lane, then having space in between all those individually-occupied vehicles — that takes up a lot of space!
Problem: Four-wheeler (Car) — Single person — More traffic — More pollution
Solution: Four-wheeler (Car) — Car Pooling — Less traffic — Less pollution
Observations: 2
Traffic — During the Rainy season
- Mainly because when it rains, roads get waterlogged. And the side that gets waterlogged, generally left side of the roads because roads are slightly tilted towards the left, drivers avoid that part and most vehicles use the clear part of the road, reducing the number of lanes/space available for passing. So if there is a three-lane road and after a rainfall, it gets waterlogged like one lane of it is completely underwater, then only two lanes are open for use, and previously vehicles were using all three are now using only two lanes. Still, traffic volume is the same, so roads get jammed during rains.
- Due to heavy rain, Potholes will be filled with water. Further, standing water on the road discourages drivers from passing along because of safety reasons. It might cause slipping, skidding, hydroplaning of cars, etc. So drivers become more cautious and start to drive slowly. The traffic stream starts moving very slowly ultimately might even come to a halt causing a jam, like a clogged pipe.
- Because people who would normally walk a few blocks take their cars when it’s raining.
Problem — Potholes, and water clogging due to heavy rain.
Solution — Cover potholes before the rainy season and clear the drainage system to avoid water clogging.
Observations: 3
Traffic — When are roads are under construction.
When the single-carriageway roads (one lane up, one lane down) are being constructed, maintained, or repaired, the contractor places all the traffic on one side of the road (one lane) while the other lane is being worked on. This is done using a Stop/Go system (traffic in one direction passes while the traffic going the other way waits for the passing traffic to stop, usually in 10-minute intervals or depending on the road's level of service) system that uses only one lane.
Problem — Road construction/repairing during rush hours causes heavy traffic.
Solution — Road construction/repair must be done at midnight when people are either sleeping at home and not in their rush hours.
Humans have complicated brains, and Ants don’t.
When the speed and density hit a tipping point, jams are inevitable. Yet in the ant world, traffic jams don’t happen; even things get crowded.
The easiest solution to an overcrowded road is to make it bigger.
The simple reason ‘we’ humans hate traffic is that occupied time feels shorter than unoccupied time because we hate waiting in line. Anxiety makes waits seem longer. Our brains pay more attention to the losses than the gains.
Co-ordination is the problem — not the cars.
Humans are the monkey drivers with slow reaction time and short attention spans.
As a driver, our goal is to stay the same distance from the car ahead as from the car behind at all times. But we as a tailgater can start a traffic snake if the driver ahead brakes.
Solution (Possibly) — Self-driven cars.
