SimCity update 1.7 released, includes traffic congestion improvements
Beep! Beep!
The much-anticipated traffic congestion update for SimCity has been released.
Update 1.7 tunes traffic congestion and fixes some of the game's heavily-criticised intersection traffic issues.
The update means emergency vehicles, such as fire trucks and ambulances, will drive in empty lanes to get around traffic at intersections. Additionally, emergency and delivery vehicles now have priority over regular traffic when leaving a garage.
Meanwhile, all units and buildings can now be demolished using the bulldoze tool, performance improvements have been made for low spec systems, and a new server, Asia 2, has been added.
The traffic improvements will be particularly welcome. Many considered the game's curious traffic guidelines to be a game-breaker - something developer Maxis has acknowledged. The developers tuned the congestion avoidance system too low, meaning vehicles would avoid alternative, quicker routes when in traffic jams.
