Chaos theory works

[atbman]

Just seen this on the Cycling Plus forum

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjrEQaG5jPM

[jyossarian]

That's Asynchronous traffic for you.

[Serendipper]

Perfection.

Problem with western culture, is our belief in a controlled, mechanical universe.

Even if the clockwork model was dissmissed a thousand years ago, most still cling to this model as a way to control traffic.

I rode a horse through a busy Mexican street once, and was at first frustrated by the lack of signal observation. Then I realized that the horse couldn't read the signals if it tried, and I went with the flow.

Vehicular Cycling seem ridiculous at times? Try Vehicular Equestrianism.

[Az B]

What's obvious is that the drivers clearly have no cell phones.

Az

[Mos6502]

More horns, less lights. If everybody drove 10mph (and in much smaller vehicles) we'd have no need for controlled intersections, and it'd all work fine until rush hour. Here's another video, this time from within the traffic:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfGy3MEUXHA

[velonomad]

Lane position my *****! :D

[古強者死神]

Looks like some sort of RTS game with a bad AI.

so many motorcycles!!! I want one so bad but I gave up and a mountain bike will have to do.

[DCCommuter]

It reminds me of a study I saw out of England, where they removed all traffic signs, signals, controls and even paint from a section of roadway. Accidents were reduced by 55%.

[AndrewP]

Every body is driving at s peed that allows them to react to the situation in front of them, then they take their turn.

[sgtsmile]

The thing that stuck me was that no one struck anyone. That is what happens when people take the other into account, and share the road instead of anally demanding their "rights". Ridgedness rarely ever benefits anyone.

[Serendipper]

so many motorcycles!!! I want one so bad but I gave up and a mountain bike will have to do.

Why did you give up? Two wheels are always better than four...get a MC, many used ones are the same
price as a new bicycle.:)

[古強者死神]

I made a promise to my girl if she let me drop the cash on a new mtb that I would give up my quest for a motorcycle.

So quickly agreed. I have 3 kids, and tampa is a very dangerous place for a motorcycle (good rider or not) so I figured it was a good trade off, and ended any arguments about the cost of a mtb before they even started.

I would rather enjoy the peace and surroundings of a nice trail than the busy streets anyways.

Down the line I am sure I can still get one, so its not like I really had to give it up totally just postpone it.

[77Univega]

The thing that stuck me was that no one struck anyone. That is what happens when people take the other into account, and share the road instead of anally demanding their "rights". Ridgedness rarely ever benefits anyone. --- Yes, no one struck anyone in THAT particular video segment. I really wonder what the accident and injury rate is in that intersection over the course of a year.

[seeker333]

Every body is driving at s peed that allows them to react to the situation in front of them, then they take their turn.

Exactly, their slow speed makes this situation possible.

Near the beginning a pedestrian walks across the intersection; this is when i realized most of those vehicles were going 5mph, maybe ~12mph in the far background.

People drive 35mph routinely through my neighborhood with the std 25mph posted speed limit, and this is as slow as they get during their trip.

Speed is inherently the cause of most collisions. By this i mean that even if you're very distracted, even without signs or lane markings, you can safely negotiate an indian rush hour intersection IF you're going very slow.

Even if you hit someone at 5mph its usually going to be insignificant, damage or injury wise (if they have the protection of a car, bike a different story).

[古強者死神]

It works there, and could work in some places here but not in all places.

The intersection just outside of my work is on a main road 50mph each way, The traffic light keeps everybody going nice and fast and nobody has to wait very long. If we used thie "chaos" setup and everybody had to slow down even to just say 20mph it would really hurt the overall pace and slow/backup traffic.

In slower intersections tho, I can see it working pretty well there are alot of usless lights you get stuck at, usually the ones that flash yellow very late at night, but they still keep you stuck there at red when there is no traffic in the daytime.

[77Univega]

Perfection. Problem with western culture, is our belief in a controlled, mechanical universe... --- Maybe chaos theory doesn't work. According to the World Health Organization, India has among the highest traffic injury and fatality rates. North America has among the lowest rates.
Visit www.safecarguide.com/exp/statistics/statistics.htm and scroll down to the statistics table.

[filtersweep]

That is awesome. I just returned from Chennai- and that video pretty much sums up the driving- very few controlled intersections- no freeways, and millions of people.

There is more of a collective attitude among people- not the "me first" style of western thinking.

On a sad note- once someone can afford a scooter or motorcycle, they wouldn't want to be caught dead on a bike.