Aspen can’t build its way out of congestion

Editor:

The desire to reduce traffic and travel time by widening or straightening roads is almost as old as the automobile itself. It kind of seems logical that adding new lanes should shorten the commute. The only trouble with the idea is that it doesn’t work and really never has.

Since the 1960s, traffic engineers on every continent have noticed that increased road capacity is quickly filled up with more cars, and commuting times remain the same or even worsen. There is almost a one-to-one increase in commuter numbers to fill up new road capacity. The technical term is “induced demand.”

It works like this: Immediately upon completing wider roads, traffic eases up for a short period. But because the commute is momentarily shorter, people start taking extra trips, people further from town start to commute, and people stop using public transportation as frequently. The road fills back up until the price — people’s time — is too high to pay.

What you end up with is the same commute time but with the charm of many more cars. The analogy used by traffic engineers is loosening your belt to lose weight. The science is out there for anyone to see. Before you vote on building new roads across Marolt Open Space, I’d recommend googling The Lewis-Mogridge Position or The Fundamental Law of Road Congestion.

It’s a fantasy to think that somehow Aspen can build its way out of congestion when no other city in America has managed to do the same.

Mark Harvey, Basalt