Introduction

The delays arising from traffic congestion are a fact of life in many communities. According to a February 2007 Harris Poll, just over one-third (37 percent) cite traffic congestion as a serious problem in the community, while one-quarter say traffic congestion is a serious problem that is not being addressed. Close to half of all congestion happens day after day at the same time and location. Much of this recurring congestion is due to physical bottlenecks – specific points on the highway system where traffic flow is restricted.

While many of the Nation’s bottlenecks can best be addressed through costly major construction projects, there is also significant opportunity for the application of operational and low-cost infrastructure solutions to bring about relief in the short term. This document, Traffic Bottlenecks: A Primer – Focus on Low-Cost Operational Improvements, describes bottlenecks and explores the opportunity for near-term operational and low-cost construction opportunities to correct them.

This Primer is intended to be a dynamic work-in-progress. While updated hard-copy versions will occasionally be made available, an electronic version will be regularly supplemented as new strategies are identified from within the transportation community. The Primer is a key resource for Federal Highway Administration's Localized Bottleneck Reduction (LBR) Program, providing a virtual forum for peer exchange between members of the transportation community interested in alleviating bottleneck congestion. The LBR program, initiated in 2007, is designed to expand the portfolio of bottleneck reduction tools available to transportation agencies to encompass innovative, readily adopted strategies for reducing congestion at bottleneck locations.