Buffalo’s Braess Paradox
Article source: New York Times
The Scajaquada Expressway in Buffalo, New York, has long been a source of contention for local residents. The major highway cuts through historic Delaware Park, home of the Frank Lloyd Wright house, the Buffalo Zoo, and lots of natural beauty. In a park that should be accessible to residents and visitors alike, the enormous road blockades the city into an impermeable North and South. Whether it’s by bike or by foot, residents allege it’s far from pedestrian friendly. There is a growing movement to transform the road into a smaller, lower speed street, in order to reconnect the city again and make a safer environment for residents and visitors.
With this proposal comes the question of “where is the traffic going to go”? The removal of the expressway seems inherently negative from a traffic perspective; smaller roads will just become even more congested and unsafe elsewhere. But in reality, there are plenty of examples around the world pointing to how this is not true. Major highways in cities such as Seoul, Paris, and Boston have been torn down, not only helping pedestrians but surprisingly producing a more efficient traffic-scape. Road removals are also correlated with economic benefits and improvements in city air and noise pollution. Therefore, in some cases, the removal of resources leads to better outcomes.
How can removing a resource intended to improve efficiency actually increase efficiency? If this seems like a paradox, it’s because it is, and it was first noted by a man named Dietrich Braess. The paradox, called “Braess’s paradox”, is specifically concerned with traffic networks, and how removing a road can lead to a decrease in travel times. The debate revolving around the Scajaquada Expressway is concerned with this paradox. While it is clear that the road produces unwanted social effects on the division of the park, it’s not entirely clear that removing it would also provide benefits in lowering traffic times.
Whether or not the road will be torn down in the future is still a topic of discussion. Lynn Richards, the president of an organization called Congress for the New Urbanism, says that removing the highway is “a somewhat radical idea.” Other experts have argued that in downsizing the road, intersections would simply not be able to handle the traffic. But in the end, the idea is not entirely far-fetched: as Braess’s findings show us, networks can have unintended consequences.