The machine learning model that can predict a city’s traffic

A new machine learning model can predict traffic activity in different zones of cities. To do so, a researcher used data from a main car-sharing company in Italy as a proxy for overall city traffic. Understanding how different urban zones interact can help avoid traffic jams, for example, and enable targeted responses of policy makers – such as local expansion of public transportation.

Understanding people’s mobility patterns will be central to improving urban traffic flow. “As populations grow in urban areas, this knowledge can help policymakers design and implement effective transportation policies and inclusive urban planning,” said Simone Daniotti of the Complexity Science Hub.