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Probing A Traffic Congestion Controversy: A Comment
Author(s) -
Verhoef Erik T.
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
journal of regional science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.171
H-Index - 79
eISSN - 1467-9787
pISSN - 0022-4146
DOI - 10.1111/0022-4146.00238
Subject(s) - terminology , argument (complex analysis) , trips architecture , traffic congestion , term (time) , function (biology) , demand curve , computer science , economics , mathematical economics , operations research , microeconomics , mathematics , transport engineering , philosophy , physics , engineering , biochemistry , linguistics , chemistry , quantum mechanics , evolutionary biology , parallel computing , biology
Ohta (2001) claims to have resolved a die‐hard controversy on traffic congestion modeling by defining an inverse aggregate demand function that has traffic density as its argument—in Ohta’s terminology the ‘primitive term.’Using this demand function, Ohta shows that ‘hypercongestion’ may very well be an optimal stationary state. This contribution argues that at least if what road users demand is completed trips, and if time spent on the road while traveling implies a cost, then Ohta’s approach is fundamentally flawed. Also the conclusion that hypercongestion can be optimal is no longer valid.