Bellocchi, LeonardoGeroliminis, Nikolas2020-09-122020-09-122020-09-122020-03-1710.1038/s41598-020-61486-1https://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/171601WOS:000563449300001We study the dynamical process of congestion formation for large-scale urban networks by exploring a unique dataset of taxi movements in a megacity. We develop a dynamic model based on a reaction and a diffusion term that properly reproduces the cascade phenomena of traffic. The interaction of these two terms brings the values of the speeds on road network in self-organized patterns and it reveals an elegant physical law that reproduces the dynamics of congestion with very few parameters. The results presented show a promising match with an available real data set of link speeds estimated from more than 40 millions of GPS coordinates per day of about 20,000 taxis in Shenzhen, China.Multidisciplinary SciencesScience & Technology - Other Topicscell transmission modelperimeter controlsimulationtext::journal::journal article::research article