Comments on: Ants and Non-Selfish Routing http://www.howwedrive.com/2009/04/01/ants-and-non-selfish-routing/ Just another WordPress weblog Mon, 13 Feb 2012 12:09:52 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: Stewart McCoy http://www.howwedrive.com/2009/04/01/ants-and-non-selfish-routing/#comment-9827 Stewart McCoy Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:26:52 +0000 http://www.howwedrive.com/?p=773#comment-9827 Just wanted to follow up and let you all know that Go! transportation magazines article on ants and intelligent transportation systems can be read here: http://www.go-explore-trans.org/2009/apr-may/ants.cfm Just wanted to follow up and let you all know that Go! transportation magazines article on ants and intelligent transportation systems can be read here: http://www.go-explore-trans.org/2009/apr-may/ants.cfm

]]> By: Brian Weis http://www.howwedrive.com/2009/04/01/ants-and-non-selfish-routing/#comment-6774 Brian Weis Thu, 02 Apr 2009 00:40:24 +0000 http://www.howwedrive.com/?p=773#comment-6774 That's a good point. I had noticed personally (at least where I grew up in Rochester) that 3-4 cars seemed to be the limit of patients, or it might even represent the tolerance of the person about to go on the current "Active" side of the bridge. Each car increasing that persons anxiety that it might be rude to keep the other side waiting. This in itself might have something to do with the "Waiting" side getting a bit impatient after 3-4 cars and starting to nudge closer to the bridge, closing the small gap in the funnel on their side of the one lane bridge. It would be great if I could capture some video of one of these bridges during rush hour, might learn something from it. That’s a good point. I had noticed personally (at least where I grew up in Rochester) that 3-4 cars seemed to be the limit of patients, or it might even represent the tolerance of the person about to go on the current “Active” side of the bridge. Each car increasing that persons anxiety that it might be rude to keep the other side waiting. This in itself might have something to do with the “Waiting” side getting a bit impatient after 3-4 cars and starting to nudge closer to the bridge, closing the small gap in the funnel on their side of the one lane bridge. It would be great if I could capture some video of one of these bridges during rush hour, might learn something from it.

]]> By: Stewart McCoy http://www.howwedrive.com/2009/04/01/ants-and-non-selfish-routing/#comment-6773 Stewart McCoy Wed, 01 Apr 2009 22:44:41 +0000 http://www.howwedrive.com/?p=773#comment-6773 Tom, I learned about your book/blog when I attended your presentation at TRB earlier this year. Anyway, this is a timely article for me. I just spent the afternoon interviewing Willy Sorenson, Intelligent Transportation Engineer at the Iowa DOT, about using ant traffic behavior as a model for intelligent transportation systems. My article will appear in the April-May issue of Go! magazine. I enjoy your blog. Cheers! Tom, I learned about your book/blog when I attended your presentation at TRB earlier this year.

Anyway, this is a timely article for me. I just spent the afternoon interviewing Willy Sorenson, Intelligent Transportation Engineer at the Iowa DOT, about using ant traffic behavior as a model for intelligent transportation systems. My article will appear in the April-May issue of Go! magazine.

I enjoy your blog. Cheers!

]]> By: Tom Vanderbilt http://www.howwedrive.com/2009/04/01/ants-and-non-selfish-routing/#comment-6768 Tom Vanderbilt Wed, 01 Apr 2009 18:41:49 +0000 http://www.howwedrive.com/?p=773#comment-6768 That's interesting, Brian. I wonder how the 3-4 cars norm itself emerged. Does that somehow represent the limit of people's tolerance or patience? Or maybe that's merely the length of the queue. I don't think Robert Frank actually worked out a sort of tipping point where it letting too many cars in one direction go becomes actually inefficient... In NYC we have a variant of this when cars have to move around double-parked vehicles; though in that case the person in the non-blocked lane usually has an advantage. That’s interesting, Brian. I wonder how the 3-4 cars norm itself emerged. Does that somehow represent the limit of people’s tolerance or patience? Or maybe that’s merely the length of the queue. I don’t think Robert Frank actually worked out a sort of tipping point where it letting too many cars in one direction go becomes actually inefficient…

In NYC we have a variant of this when cars have to move around double-parked vehicles; though in that case the person in the non-blocked lane usually has an advantage.

]]> By: Brian Weis http://www.howwedrive.com/2009/04/01/ants-and-non-selfish-routing/#comment-6767 Brian Weis Wed, 01 Apr 2009 18:07:35 +0000 http://www.howwedrive.com/?p=773#comment-6767 Currently I reside in Ithaca and travel over these one lane bridges quite frequently. I have noticed a similar "first come first served" pattern but during times of heavy traffic such as rush hour. I have noticed that the traffic does not go turn by turn, but instead there seems to be an unwritten rule that 3-4 cars go from one side, and then 3-4 cars go from the other side. This is probably a bit more efficient than "first come first served" when it comes to high congestion. Where I grew up (Rochester NY) We had the same thing with one lane bridges, and its a commonly held belief that there is a law somewhere stating that only 3 cars should go on one side before letting the other side go. No idea if this law exists or if its just a result of a social norm becoming so prevalent that people mistake it as a law. Currently I reside in Ithaca and travel over these one lane bridges quite frequently. I have noticed a similar “first come first served” pattern but during times of heavy traffic such as rush hour. I have noticed that the traffic does not go turn by turn, but instead there seems to be an unwritten rule that 3-4 cars go from one side, and then 3-4 cars go from the other side. This is probably a bit more efficient than “first come first served” when it comes to high congestion. Where I grew up (Rochester NY) We had the same thing with one lane bridges, and its a commonly held belief that there is a law somewhere stating that only 3 cars should go on one side before letting the other side go. No idea if this law exists or if its just a result of a social norm becoming so prevalent that people mistake it as a law.

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