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To most people, traffic jams look like an ecological disaster. And they are one, but not for the reasons that people assume. Here's why: Traffic jams are not an environmental problem; they are a driving problem. If reducing congestion merely makes life easier for those who drive, then the improved traffic flow actually increases the environmental damage done by cars by raising overall traffic volume, encouraging sprawl. and long car commutes. It also reduces the disincentives that make drivers think twice about getting into their cars. Traffic jams are actually beneficial, environmentally, if they reduce the willingness of drivers to drive and, in doing so, turn car pools, buses, trains, bicycles, walking, and urban apartments into attractive options. Treating congestion, rather than driving, as an environmental issue often leads to transportation policies that, from an environmental point of view, are flawed. Almost always, when traffic engineers and others talk about reducing congestion what they are really talking about is making traffic flow more efficiently, and that means increasing the overall volume of cars--an obvious environmental negative.