From the Publisher
Driving is a fact of life. We are all spending more and more time
on the road, and traffic is an issue we face everyday. This
audiobook will make you think about it in a whole new light.
We have always had a passion for cars and driving. Now
Traffic offers us an exceptionally rich understanding of
that passion. Vanderbilt explains why traffic jams form, outlines
the unintended consequences of our attempts to engineer safety and
even identifies the most common mistakes drivers make in parking
lots. Based on exhaustive research and interviews with driving
experts and traffic officials around the globe, Traffic
gets under the hood of the quotidian activity of driving to uncover
the surprisingly complex web of physical, psychological and
technical factors that explain how traffic works.
From the Jacket
"Traffic gets about as close to the heart of
modern existence as any book could get . . . Engagingly written,
meticulously researched, endlessly interesting and informative,
[it] is one of those rare books that comes out of the depths of
nowhere."
-Jonathan Yardley, The Washington Post Book World
"A surprising, enlightening look at the psychology of human beings
behind the steering wheels . . . Jammed with delicious
you've-got-to-be-kidding moments . . . My solution to the nation's
vehicular woes would be to make this good book required reading for
anyone applying for a driver's license."
-Mary Roach, The New York Times Book Review
"Smart and comprehensive . . . A shrewd tour of the
much-experienced but little-understood world of driving . . . A
balanced and instructive discussion on how to improve our policies
toward the inexorable car . . . Vanderbilt's book is likely to
remain relevant well into the new century."
-Edward L. Glaeser, The New Republic
"A delightful tour through the mysteries and manners of
driving."-Tony Dokoupil, Newsweek
"A breezy . . . well-researched . . . examination of the strange
interaction of humanity and multiton metal boxes that can roar
along at . . . 60 m.p.h. or sit for hours in bumper-to-bumper
traffic."
-Patrick T. Reardon, Chicago Tribune
"Traffic will definitely change the way you think
about driving, which also means changing the way you think about
being human."
-Michael Agger, Slate
"[A] joyride in the often surprising landscape of traffic science
and psychology."
-Abigail Tucker, Smithsonian Magazine
"Tom Vanderbilt is one of our best and most interesting writers,
with an extraordinary knack for looking at everyday life and
explaining, in wonderful and entertaining detail, how it really
works. That's never been more true than with
Traffic, where he takes a subject
that we all deal with (and worry about), and lets us see it
through new eyes. In the process, he helps us understand
better not just the highway, but the world. It doesn't matter
whether you drive or take the bus--you're going to want to read
this book."
--James Surowiecki, author of The Wisdom of Crowds
"A great, deep, multidisciplinary investigation of the dynamics and
the psychology of traffic jams. It is fun to read. Anyone who
spends more than 19 minutes a day in traffic should read this
book."
--Nassim Nicholas Taleb, author The Black Swan
"Fascinating, illuminating, and endlessly entertaining as well.
Vanderbilt shows how a sophisticated understanding of human
behavior can illuminate one of the modern world's most basic and
most mysterious endeavors. You'll learn a lot; and the life you
save may be your own."
--Cass R. Sunstein, coauthor of Nudge: Improving Decisions
About Health, Wealth, and Happiness
"Everyone who drives--and many people who don't--should read this
book. It is a psychology book, a popular science book, and a
how-to-save-your-life manual, all rolled into one. I found it
gripping and fascinating from the very beginning to the very
end."
--Tyler Cowen, author of Discover Your Inner
Economist
"Fascinating, surprising . . . Vanderbilt's book will be a
revelation not just to us drivers but also, one might guess, to our
policy makers."
-Alan Moores, The Seattle Times
"A well-written, important book that should hold the interest of
anyone who drives a car."
-Dennis Lythgoe, Deseret News
"An engaging, sociable tour of all things driving-related."
-Joel Rice, The Tennessean
"Manages to be downright fun."
-Dennis Simanaitis, Road and Track
"Traffic changes the way you think about driving.
For that reason alone, it deserves your attention."
-Dan Danbom, Rocky Mountain News
"Intriguing . . . Somehow manages to plunge far more deeply than
one would imagine a meditation on travel possibly could. Perhaps
without intending to, Vanderbilt has narrowed in on the central
question of our time . . . His book asks us to consider how we can
persuade human beings to behave more cooperatively than
selfishly."
-Elaine Margolin, The Denver Post
"Vanderbilt investigates . . . complexities with zeal. Surprising
details abound."
-The New Yorker
"Fresh and timely . . . Vanderbilt investigates how human nature
has shaped traffic, and vice versa, finally answering drivers' most
familiar and frustrating questions."
--Publishers Weekly
"Fluently written and oddly entertaining, full of points to ponder
while stuck at the on-ramp meter or an endless red light."
--Kirkus
"This may be the most insightful and comprehensive study ever
done of driving behavior and how it reveals truths about the types
of people we are."
--Booklist
"Tom Vanderbilt uncovers a raft of counterintuitive facts about
what happens when we get behind the wheel, and why."
--BusinessWeek
"Fascinating . . . Could not come at a better time."
--Library Journal
"Brisk . . . Smart . . . Delivers a wealth of automotive
insights both curious and counterintuitive."
-Details
"A literate, sobering look at our roadways that explains why the
other lane is moving faster and why you should never drive
at 1 p.m. on Saturday."
--GQ
"An engaging, informative, psychologically savvy account of the
conscious and unconscious assumptions of individual drivers-and the
variations in 'car culture' around the world . . . Full of
fascinating facts and provocative propositions."
-Glenn Altschuler, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
"An engrossing tour through the neuroscience of highway illusions,
the psychology of late merging, and other existential driving
dilemmas."
-Michael Mason, Discover
"Funny . . . Enlightening . . . Want to spend 286 pages having
a good time and learning a whole lot about something you do every
day for an hour or two? Buy this book."
-Ben Wear, Austin American-Statesman
"I'm very glad I read this book . . . It tells you a lot about
traffic. But of course it does more than this. It's really a book
about human nature."
-William Leith, Evening Standard (UK)
"A richly extended metaphor for the challenge of organising
competing human needs and imperfect human judgment into harmonious
coexistence."
-Rafael Behr, The Guardian (UK)
"Automobile traffic is one of the most studied phenomena in
advanced societies . . . Mr. Vanderbilt has mastered all of it.
Arresting facts appear on every page."
-Christopher Caldwell, Financial Times (UK)
From the Hardcover edition.