The weakest chapter, which retails Conover's longish drive with the Beijing Target Auto Club, is nearly as tedious to read as it must have been for him to experience, and its conclusion, while unobjectionably fair, hardly stretches the mind: "Lord only knows where it all could be headed — in terms of congestion and pollution, in terms of competition for increasingly scarce and expensive fuel..
In the long term, congestion pricing is the best solution, but it could take years to adopt.
An increase in the rate of blood flow to a body part, which is referred to by the term congestion, or hyperemia, occurs during inflammation; a diminished blood flow to tissues is referred to by the term ischemia, or a local anemia.
But with the first rapid-transit rail lines not scheduled to start operating for at least four years, and greater prosperity only adding to the numbers of cars and motorcycles on the roads, transportation experts warn that in the near term congestion is likely to worsen.
In the long term, congestion taxes on cars -- like the charge instituted in London in 2003 -- can reduce traffic and increase cycling and mass transit use.
Nigel Gray, project leader of the free-flow system, said: "Although our scheme will make significant improvements, in terms of congestion, it's not the long term answer.
Managers can focus on operational performance by reconfiguring layouts more frequently to relieve short-term congestion, and maximizing throughput for current product mix and demand.
While the Obama administration has focused its support for such networks through the creation of jobs and easing of congestion, the long-term competitive advantage that cities gain as the result of such linkages has the potential to be its longest-term benefit.
To make Vickrey's idea sound more palatable, today's traffic engineers have changed the term from "congestion pricing" to "value pricing," the idea being that drivers are paying to get something of value.
