By Debra Kelly 韓璐 選 劉宇佳 注

Traffic can be the bane² of our existence. There’s nothing that will ruin your day faster than being stuck in a traffic jam all morning, and it’s even worse when there’s seemingly no reason for it. There’s a lot of interesting science behind traffic, though, and while understanding it might not make sitting in it any better, it can teach you how to avoid some of the mistakes we all make behind the wheel.³

1. The Way We Merge⁴ Causes Problems

Whether you’re merging from the left or the right, chances are good that you’re doing it wrong and causing all sorts of problems. When most people see that they need to merge, their first instinct is to do it right away. They brake, slow down, speed up, and change lanes⁵ in between oncoming traffic. According to the Minnesota Department of Transportation, that’s completely wrong. Sudden slowing causes traffic to back up, a problem that’s made worse by sudden lane changes and other cars braking to accommodate⁶ the merging traffic.

So what should you do? Exactly what you probably curse⁷ drivers for doing: waiting until the last minute. If you do that, traffic will fall into a more natural pattern called a “zipper merge,” meaning there are no surprises, no sudden braking, and a smoother transition from one lane to another, which cuts down on backups.⁸ This does, of course, rely on other drivers to let you in at the last minute and be courteous⁹ enough to not cut you off, which causes all sorts of other problems.

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1. weird: 怪異的。

2. bane: 禍害，痛苦之源。

3. 交通背后也有很多有趣的知識。雖然知道這些可能不會使情況有所好轉，但卻能教會你如何避免開車時所犯的種種錯誤。behind the wheel: 在駕駛中。

4. merge: 合并。

5. lane: 車道。

6. accommodate: 適應。

7. curse: 咒罵。

8. 這樣一來，交通就會呈現出一種更加自然、稱為“拉鏈式并道”的模式。也就是說，人們并非突然剎車并道，而是一道道慢慢并過去，這樣就會減少擁堵。zipper: 拉鏈；transition: 過渡；backup: <美>車輛擁堵。

9. courteous: 有禮貌的。