The Truth About Traffic tonight on TVNZ 7

If you drive a car every day, questions such as: why has traffic stopped for no apparent reason; why am I always stuck behind the same slow car; or why is the other lane always faster, but as soon as I get into that lane it slows down again, will sound familiar to you.

On tonight’s documentary, The Truth About Traffic, science and technology writer, Jake Ward takes a look at one of the world’s biggest headaches and attempts to make sense of the traffic equation. Traffic is a complex system made up of millions of variables that make it work or not.

Every day, nearly every person pulls out into traffic – they all think they are good drivers, and they all think they know the shortcuts. But they are dead wrong. Even the best drivers have bad driving habits that put everyone in danger.

The Truth About Traffic sees Ward show how the traffic organism is completely counter-intuitive; people actually steer themselves into accidents. He discovers how according to physics, we all can move faster by driving slower, shows that your brain doesn’t work the way you think it does behind the wheel, and the ultimate surprise – humans drive best when the rules are taken away.

The Truth About Traffic Tuesday 11 October, 10.05pm on TVNZ 7

- TVNZ