Chain-reaction crash in traffic flow controlled by taillights

• We presented the dynamic model for the chain-reaction crash in low-visibility conditions on a highway.
• We studied whether or not the first collision induces the chain-reaction crash.
• We derived the transition points and region maps for the chain-reaction crash in traffic flow controlled by taillights.

We study the chain-reaction crash (multiple-vehicle collision) in low-visibility condition on a road. In the traffic situation, drivers brake according to taillights of the forward vehicle. The first crash may induce more collisions. We investigate whether or not the first collision induces the chain-reaction crash, numerically and analytically. The dynamic transitions occur from no collisions through a single collision, double collisions and triple collisions, to multiple collisions with decreasing the headway. Also, we find that the dynamic transition occurs from the finite chain reaction to the infinite chain reaction when the headway is less than the critical value. We derive, analytically, the transition points and the region maps for the chain-reaction crash in traffic flow controlled by taillights.