Congestion is too much traffic for the roads to carry. Traffic congestion, ease congestion, congestion charge.
Building more road capacity tends to fill up again within a few years — induced demand is one of the best-established findings in transport planning, and it is why pricing rather than widening is the usual remedy now. London's congestion charge began in 2003. In medicine, congestion is fluid or blood gathering where it should not.
1nouncongestionToo much traffic for the roads to carry.
“Traffic congestion in the city centre is worst during the morning rush hour.”
2nounfluidFluid gathering where it should not.
“The doctor listened to his chest and heard congestion in his lungs.”
congestion is an overcrowding.
Latin congestio comes from congerere, to heap together — con plus gerere, to carry. Digest, gesture and suggest come from the same carrying.
Proto-Indo-European
*h₂eǵ-
Latin
congestĭō — heap, accumulation
Middle English
congestioun
English, today
congestion
Built from
From late Middle English congestioun, from Old French, from Latin congestĭō (“heap, accumulation”), from congerō (“to bring together, accumulate, heap up”), formed by the root gerō (“to carry”) and the prefix con-.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA