Beep, beep! That guy ahead’s not just a bad driver, he’s destroying the planet!
This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science.
Stop-and-go traffic is maddening, AND it increases fuel use and emissions!
Vindula Jayawardana and Cathy Wu from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology wondered: can self-driving vehicles be taught to MINIMIZE stops at red lights? In their computer model, the cars AND traffic lights would need sensors. This would let them synchronize to keep traffic smooth.
And? If all cars are self-driving, the researchers’ simulation predicts a TWENTY-FIVE percent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions. Plus, travel SPEEDS could increase by TWENTY percent!
Instead of seeing red, we could SEE GREEN! We could also not drive at all, but baby steps.
Reference: Jayawardana, V., & Wu, C. (2022). Learning Eco-Driving Strategies at Signalized Intersections. arXiv preprint arXiv:2204.12561.