This paper deals with some of the features of static models of road traffic congestion that have caused much debate in the literature. It first focuses on the difficulties arising with the backward-bending cost curve defined over traffic flows in the context of `continuous congestion'. The relevance of the backward-bending segment of this curve is questioned by demonstrating that the `equilibria' on this segment of the cost curve are dynamically infeasible. Next, the implications for static models of `peak congestion' are considered. In doing so, attention is paid also to the implicit assumptions, particularly on the nature of scheduling costs, that are necessary to render static models of peak congestion internally consistent. The paper ends with a brief discussion of the implications for dynamic models of peak congestion.
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Paper provided by European Regional Science Association in its series ERSA conference papers with number
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References listed on IDEAS Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
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[Downloadable!]
Small, K.A. & Gomez-Ibanez, J.A., 1996.
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Other versions:
Small, Kenneth A. & Gomez-Ibanez, Jose A., 1999.
"Urban transportation,"
Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics,
in: P. C. Cheshire & E. S. Mills (ed.), Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, edition 1, volume 3, chapter 46, pages 1937-1999
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