Classification of traffic jams on alpine motorways

First, we briefly summarize the state of research in traffic congestion and existing approaches towards jam classification. We describe the assumptions of the adaptive smoothing method used for processing the empirical data. We present the results of our analysis of the spatiotemporal dynamics of traffic flow on the A12 and A13 motorways in Austria in 2016. Next, we discuss the outcomes for the A12 in detail and compare them with those from the A9 motorway in Germany to see if there are specific patterns due to specific conditions on alpine motorways. We postulate that the situation on the A12 is a result of local traffic overlapping with high seasonal tourist traffic waves, the density of bottlenecks and lack of alternative routes. We also describe technical and methodological problems that we have encountered during the work, particularly regarding the A13. Finally, we propose solutions to overcome these issues and give even more precise data about the exact reasons for each of the congestion types. We also outline our further research plans in this area.