Intelligent Transport System Why should Building Physicists, Architects and Urban Designers Care?

Abstract

Urban traffic systems can be called intelligent if they react on changing circumstances with problem solving strategies. Unintelligent traffic systems create problems, enhance problems not only in transport, but also in economy and urban structures. They are damaging and destroying urban structures, social connections and economic stability. Pedestrians, cyclists and (to a certain amount) public transport are intelligent urban traffic systems. They are socially agreeable, environmental-friendly, flexible and - if they are not operated with high speeds - sustainable. Traffic itself is not the goal, traffic itself is a mean. Intelligent traffic systems are therefore dependent on intelligent urban structures. If urban structures are shaped in an unintelligent way as it happened in the 20th century by individual optimization of cars and human activities on every place, intelligent traffic systems are not possible any more. Precious urban space, was occupied not by the intelligent but by the powerful and ruthless car user. Caused by the fascination of effortless individual mobility, urban and transport planning created a word for cars and not for human needs. Traffic management removed obstacles for free car movement, but put barriers for all nonmotorized modes and public transport. The result was the unintelligent city, totally dependent on continuous inflow of fossil fuel. During this time period decisions and planning principles have not been built on sound scientific background, but on unquestioned extrapolation of individual experiences, on observations of symptoms without any understanding of the deep inner mechanisms between man, city and traffic. Scientific findings from the last 30 years show the necessary basic paradigm change toward an intelligent traffic system embedded into an intelligent urban structure.