Transient situations in traffic flow: Modelling the Mexico City Cuernavaca Highway

In this paper a recent variable anticipation cellular automata model for single-lane traffic flow is extended to analyze the situation of free and congested flow in the Highway from Mexico City to Cuernavaca. This highway presents free flow in standard days; but in the returning day of long weekends or holidays it exhibits congested flow and in rush hours jamming appears. We illustrate how our CA model for traffic flow can deal appropriately with transient situations and can be used to search new alternatives that allow to improve the traffic flow in Mexican highways.