How car traffic is managed? Is it managed by mathematical algorithm? Or by human(operator)? If it's by operator, can it be managed mathematically? Or is it by physics? By what theories/formula?
Because someone told me that traffic in US is managed by satellite and it is synchronized each other.
On
From what I understand (and I may be way off here), traffic lights can be programmed based on the expected amount of traffic flow through that intersection at certain times of day. Researchers can collect data on the amount of traffic on certain roads at certain times, and then use this data to optimize the timing of the lights to avoid congestion.
So, in a sense, there is some math involved with the data collection and optimization problem, although I don't think there is a specific formula or algorithm that gets followed.
One possible way to model car traffic is to use min-plus or max-plus semirings. See for instance these slides: Fundamental Traffic Diagrams : A Maxplus Point of View, where you can find more references at the end.
See also Bart De Schutter's Traffic and transportation networks publications, with 253 entries.