Episode 9

This is how we fix traffic

Published on: 20th February, 2026

Traffic isn’t just an inconvenience; it’s a thief. It robs you of time, health - and sometimes sanity. But the "obvious" fixes, like widening freeways or upgrading subways, often leave us stuck in the exact same spot. In this episode of It Turns Out, Kara Miller talks with UCLA urban planning expert Michael Manville about how to really fix traffic (it’s doable). Discover why the one scientific solution to gridlock is uniquely "uncontagious" among politicians, but quite popular among those who’ve experienced it. How do you get traffic to move at 50mph? Here’s your answer.

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About the Podcast

It Turns Out
"It Turns Out" reveals the hidden realities reshaping our world—from how marriage impacts inequality to the way that the tax code has transformed wealth.

Through conversations with experts who challenge conventional wisdom, award-winning journalist Kara Miller focuses each episode on groundbreaking research, changing how listeners see society, economics, technology, and human behavior. “It Turns Out” delves into data that directly impacts your life—whether you know it or not.

You can reach us at info@itturnsoutshow.com

We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. This work was done under Grant No. G-2025-79141.

About your host

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Kara Miller

Kara hosted the nationally-syndicated public radio program Innovation Hub, which she launched. The program won the 2021 Clarion Award for best Radio Talk or Interview Program and aired on more than 100 stations, including in New York, Houston, Philadelphia, Chicago and Washington, D.C. It spotlighted compelling thinkers, including Steve Wozniak, Sherry Turkle, Yo-Yo Ma, Walter Isaacson, and Sal Khan.

She writes “The Big Idea” column for The Boston Globe and is a frequent contributor to The Boston Globe Magazine.

Kara has moderated panels and spoken about innovation and entrepreneurship at events hosted by The International Women’s Forum, PBS Digital Media for STEM, Harvard Medical School, Google, and MIT Sloan.

She has taught at Babson College and at the University of Massachusetts.