Stochastic description of traffic breakdown

2003

We present a comparison of nucleation in an isothermal-isochoric container with traffic congestion on a one-lane freeway. The analysis is based, in both cases, on the probabilistic description by stochastic master equations. Further we analyze the characteristic features of traffic breakdowns. To describe this phenomenon we apply the stochastic model regarding the jam emergence to the formation of a large car cluster on the highway.