What does traffic forecasting estimate?

Traffic forecasting primarily involves estimating the number of vehicles or people using a transportation facility over a specific time period in the future. This process utilizes historical data, current traffic conditions, and various predictive modeling techniques to understand patterns in transportation demand.

Accurate traffic forecasts are essential for effective transportation planning and infrastructure development, as they inform decisions on road capacity, public transit system design, traffic signal timing, and other critical factors related to managing and optimizing the transportation network.

While other areas such as accident prediction, future construction projects, and fuel consumption can be influenced by traffic patterns, they do not fall under the main focus of what traffic forecasting aims to achieve. Traffic forecasting is specific to understanding the expected volume of transportation use in the future, hence the correct identification of the second option.