This book addresses the reader interested in vehicular traffic
phenomena, who have not learned about them before. It presents traffic
phenomena like traffic breakdown and the emergence of moving traffic
jams by showcasing empirical traffic data measured in real-world
traffic. The author explains how these empirical traffic studies have
led to the three-phase traffic theory and why this new theory is in
conflict with standard traffic theories developed before. Moreover, he
presents the reason for the failure of applications of standard traffic
theories in real-world traffic and discusses why understanding real
traffic has caused a paradigm shift in traffic and transportation
science. The book examines why understanding real traffic breakdown is
the basis for an explanation for the autonomous driving effects on
traffic flow. It shows that understanding real traffic is possible from
real-world traffic data without the need of mathematical traffic models.
This makes the book intuitive for non-specialists, who can qualitatively
understand all the basic features of traffic dynamics. In turn,
experienced traffic researchers can grasp concepts and ideas made here
easily accessible by the author, one of the leading pioneers in the
field of vehicular traffic.