Do Your Buses Get Stuck in Traffic? Traffic solutions & the Downs-Thomson Paradox

Do your buses get stuck in traffic? It's amazing what a difference it makes to life the city when public transit is treated as a first-class alternative to driving, as it is in Amsterdam, and many other cities in the Netherlands.

The Downs-Thomson Paradox on Wikipedia:

The Dutch traffic per hour graph was taken from this report:
3e Publieksrapportage Rijkswegennet 2017

The graph of daily traffic in a car-dependant city is based off of the graph here:
Comparing the traffic volumes between countries is difficult, as they use different methods of measuring traffic, so don't take this comparison too literally; it's meant to be illustrative.

Footage of New York provided by YouTuber Walk NYC:
Walk NYC: 10/3/2019 New 14th St Traffic Regulation "Busway"

Footage of San Fransico provided by YouTuber UpDownAcross38:
First day of Car-Free Market Street. 2/10/2020

[BRAMBSSS]

My dad explained it to me as a kid like this: a full bus represents a row of 40 cars in front of you, that aren't there because of the bus

[Arjay]

If the public transport system is only used by the poor or desperate than it's a failure.
Public transport has to be a real alternative for everyone, instead of the only option for some.

[ucantbcereal]

Also a cool fact is that the buses and trams automatically get a green light when they are on or behind schedule, but not when they are ahead of schedule (; - Amsterdam resident

[Tulemasin]

In my hometown they made public transport free for all registered citizens. At fist everyone was like "yea, it's not free, it's tax payers money". But when public transport infrastructure was getting money from people who wouldn't take the bus it improved so much that now no-one complains. They even turned the city center to mostly bus lanes so drivers would avoid this route.

[Elementalism.]

* finds channel *
1.5 hours of fascination later: i need more!

[zvwejbu]

I love how some government idiots think the solution to traffic issues is to constandly BUILD MORE LANES! When that just ends up creating more traffic.

[elukok]

I live in Prague, where public transport is also really good (sadly still very little bike infrastructure but it is getting better) and everyone uses it. Politicans, rich people, poor people, famous actors or even the mayor of the city who uses bike or public transport.
It is really strange when someone from US says that they dont have or use public transport and that it is dangerous or only for poor to use public transport.
This thinking is so wrong. I cant imagine driving around Prague. It would be so much slower and so much less convinient. Especially the parking.

[RB]

I would say that I'm somewhat of a "car guy", but I really don't understand the obsession with designing our roads around them. I also love bikes, and buses, and walking. This might sound weird but I preferred it when I was younger and cars were more of a novelty. Cars are " a" choice, but in North America they're just used to give us the illusion of choice.

[AMacProOwner]

I never understood that paradox. Though rewatching your video and with the magic phrase “There’s usually no bike people, var people, train people...” it just clicked. It truly shows how nothing needs to be done one way and how much potential we have to change that into sustainable, livable streets. How speeding up a bus with a minute here and there can relief a whole city. I’ve read about that in New York how the 14th busway decreased car traffic in neighboring streets. But never understood it was directly connected to the increased speed in buses/alternative modes of transport. How a cars detour can increase the speed for everyone.

Now I understand also why my city is laser focused on saving time on bus lines. We’ll get there with bike lines eventually. :)
The planning truly matters.

Greetings from a Swedish viewer.

[cecasander]

Dear Canada.
Bus lanes. Look it up. Trust me.
Kind regards,
The Netherlands

[lpclassic]

"And be glad you're not driving in this"

*sobs in Phoenix, Arizona

[zekeriye]

I was born and raised Dutch, the more i hear from you about North-America and Canada the more i just wanna stay here.

[seneca]

1:40 "Why would anybody take this bus if it's going to get stuck in the same traffic as a car."

I would still choose the bus over a car if it's not slower either. Then I can at least e.g entertain myself with my phone instead of having to concentrate on driving.

[Frankfurtdabezzzt]

You're not stuck in traffic, Karen. You ARE traffic.

[robertrijkers]

16 lanes like continually upgrading your broadband internet because they keep uploading 240p footage in 1080p

[hubertblastinoff]

Our mayor (who bikes to work) instituted a new bus lane in his first term in office - against considerable resistance. And it works great.

[Down]

Nice video! I’m a busdriver in the Hoekse waard, since a month ago we finally got a traffic jam lane from Rotterdam to Heinenoord. Instead of just waiting to get to the next stop with a 5 to 10 minute delay, we can be there in time. Passing more cars that are just waiting to get home.

So I think, in theory that in the near future ppl from the region Hoekse Waard will be getting the bus more and more because it will get them home faster rather then slower.

[tobeytransport]

I’m a train person, if it takes 10/15 minutes longer I’ll still take it

[koljawertheim]

As a Dutch person I became significantly more nationalistic than I was before after I started watching your video’s :)

[finnibat]

I somehow feel like the quality of public transport really reflects a society as a whole.
Do we care about people with less income? Do we see ourselves as a community and travel with others, or are we too "individualistic" to share our meas of transportation? Do we care about social coherence and about the environment?

As a European living in Berkeley, CA, right know, I sadly believe that the answer to these questions will mostly be a resounding "no" in the US.
Public transport can not only be faster and clearly better for the environment, I also think that it is good for all members of society if they are actually "exposed" to each other in a certain degree.