Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com Autoblog http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog.com/media/feedlogo.gif Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Study: Traffic lights should respond to cars, not other way around]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2010/09/23/study-traffic-lights-should-respond-to-cars-not-other-way-arou/http://www.autoblog.com/2010/09/23/study-traffic-lights-should-respond-to-cars-not-other-way-arou/http://www.autoblog.com/2010/09/23/study-traffic-lights-should-respond-to-cars-not-other-way-arou/#commentsFiled under:

Traffic Light

Anyone who's sat at a red light for minutes on end in the middle of the night when there's no cross traffic can cheer on science for proving what we already knew: lights that adapt to the flow of traffic, instead of dictating the flow of traffic, can improve the flow of traffic. A team of researchers discovered that if you let lights locally decide how to time their signals based on how much traffic they're dealing with, and then communicate that with nearby lights, you get closer to the "green wave" of lights that keeps thing moving smoothly.

The issue with the centralized, top-down system of control is that it is geared to address an average traffic situation that rarely occurs as planned. The variations in rush hour traffic mean that lights are trying to apply one solution to a vast number of situations. In their trial in Dresden, Germany the team found that traffic congestion was eased by nine percent, pedestrian congestion by 36 percent, and bus and tram traffic by 56 percent. With rush hours spreading in time and distance, the proof and implementation of this can't come soon enough. Thanks for the tip, Toy!

[Source: Science News | Image: Corbis/Getty]

Study: Traffic lights should respond to cars, not other way around originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 23 Sep 2010 09:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Red LightRedLightresearchRush HourRushHourSanta Fe InstituteSantaFeInstitutestudyTraffictraffic jamtraffic lightTrafficJamTrafficLightThu, 23 Sep 2010 09:59:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/19643752/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2010/09/23/study-traffic-lights-should-respond-to-cars-not-other-way-arou/19643752/article-detail.xml 19643752 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2010/09/roa0097.jpg-630op_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2010/09/roa0097.jpg-630op.jpg <![CDATA[eBay Find of the Day: Flintstones car, Yabba Dabba Doo!]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/10/11/ebay-find-of-the-day-flintstones-car-yabba-dabba-doo/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/10/11/ebay-find-of-the-day-flintstones-car-yabba-dabba-doo/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/10/11/ebay-find-of-the-day-flintstones-car-yabba-dabba-doo/#commentsFiled under: ,



The old saying goes, you snooze, you lose. Unfortunately the tip for this eBay item came in a little past our deadline and a little past the closing bid, but we still wanted to share this unique vehicle with you. From the same collection that was offering the scary movie cars, we have one of the handcrafted vehicles from Flintstones, Viva Rock Vegas. No need to put the pedal to the gravel with this faux log car. Instead of the typical Flintstone's foot powered vehicle, this baby will move under its own power and is environmentally friendly to boot, with an electric motor under the planks. BTW, the boat wasn't part of the deal.

As the eBay description explains: "This log car was built by the special effects team at Universal Studios for use in the movie, 'Flintstones, Viva Rock Vegas'. It is a custom built chassis with an electric motor and electric disc brakes, much like a golf cart. It was all hand carved out of foam to look like wood. It was covered in resin for durability and hand painted... It cost about $50k to design and build... Just in time for Halloween!"

And don't feel too bad about missing out on your chance to own a piece of movie infamy history, the top bid was far short of the suspected reserve so it might pop up again in the future. And if a foam log isn't your idea of a classy ride, the seller is still offering Wayne's 1976 AMC Pacer, Chris Tucker's Corvette from Rush Hour, and the Grinch's sleigh from the live action feature starring Jim Carrey.

[Source: eBay]

Quick quackout to DuckFat for the tip!

eBay Find of the Day: Flintstones car, Yabba Dabba Doo! originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 11 Oct 2006 13:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>AMC PacerAmcPacerChris TuckerChrisTuckerCorvetteeBayFlintstone'sJim CarreyJimCarreyMike MyersMikeMyersRush HourRushHourThe GrinchTheGrinchViva Rock VegasVivaRockVegasWayne's WorldWayne'sWorldWed, 11 Oct 2006 13:58:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/683100/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2006/10/11/ebay-find-of-the-day-flintstones-car-yabba-dabba-doo/683100/article-detail.xml 683100 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2006/10/flintstonescar_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2006/10/flintstonescar.jpg <![CDATA[Midas crowns America's commuting king]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/04/20/midas-crowns-americas-commuting-king/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/04/20/midas-crowns-americas-commuting-king/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/04/20/midas-crowns-americas-commuting-king/#commentsFiled under: ,

Auto repair shop chain Midas has declared Dave Givens to be the ultimate road warrior, with a daily round trip of 372 miles, earning him the America's Longest Commute award. Every day, Givens drives from his 7.5-acre ranch in Mariposa, CA to his electrical engineering job at Cisco Systems in San Jose, CA (Google Local says that it's "only" 159 miles one way, but maybe Givens takes a few trips around the block at either end because he likes to drive so much). The stated reason for this is the enjoyment he receives from living in a rural area, although we're not sure how much time is left after his seven-hour commute. All that time is spent in a 2005 Honda Accord, which already has nearly 75,000 miles on the clock after nine months of ownership.

The Federal Highway Administration says that the length of the average commute increased by about 5% from 1990 to 2000... we're thinking that Givens himself might be solely responsible for that increase.

[Sources: North Country Times; Google Local]

Midas crowns America's commuting king originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 20 Apr 2006 11:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>CommuteCommutingdrive timeDriveTimeFederal Highway AdministrationFederalHighwayAdministrationmorning driveMorningDrivePOVprivately owned vehiclespublic transportationroad warriorRoadWarriorrush hourrush-hourRushHourtrafficThu, 20 Apr 2006 11:32:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/610201/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2006/04/20/midas-crowns-americas-commuting-king/610201/article-detail.xml 610201 http://www.autoblog.com/media/2006/04/Go-Midas-logo_thumbnail.jpg http://www.autoblog.com/media/2006/04/Go-Midas-logo.JPG -1 2