Congestion benefits of highway automation

Every year, highway congestion costs the U.S. economy billions of dollars in lost time and productivity. Relieving congestion through new construction is no longer a viable alternative due to the prohibitive economic, environmental, and social costs involved. In this regard, advanced technologies have been receiving considerable attention as potential congestion management tools. One such technological innovation is that of automation and control, where vehicles would be automatically guided along highways at high speeds and small headways. This paper analyzes the dynamics of movements of vehicles in an automated highway to determine the increase in highway capacity that can be obtained as a result of automation.