The Asymptotic Approach to Traffic Dynamics

Abstract

The asymptotic model of traffic dynamics presented is simple to employ and yields solutions that can be interpreted in terms of a continuous flow process. Although the asymptotic model is an approximation and has not been fully developed, the results that are now available are of such significance that one must question the feasibility of the determination of parameters for the various models by data collected on the open road. All linear models, regardless of complexity, will yield solutions that approach this asymptotic representation, and this model has only two constants. Whatever the ultimate significance of this asymptotic model, the simplicity of its use as a tool in the study of traffic dynamics justifies the further development of this approach.