Reducing traffic congestion in developed world cities

In developed countries, cities have tried to manage this problem by introducing traffic management schemes.

These schemes may include:

• park and ride schemes – people park in car parks on the edge of a settlement and catch public transport into the centre
• congestion charging schemes, such as those in Durham and London
• vehicle exclusion zones – for example large vehicles may not be allowed to enter narrow roads or residential areas
• permit holder parking – certain parts of the city, especially the centre can only be parked in by residents or business users who have a permit. Users often have to pay for this
• car-pooling – encourages people to share cars only driving when they really need to
• prioritised road lanes – usually for buses,taxis and cycles. Bradford has introduced 2+ lanes that only cars with high numbers of occupants can use
• low emission zones, as in London
• separate cycle lanes
• traffic calming – including road narrowing, speed bumps and reduced speed limits