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Sans the copper, they do this over here in the UK by using variable speed limits, hard shoulder 'opening' and the real threat of speed cameras.

Seems to work in my albeit anecdotal and very occasional experience of driving near Birmingham in rush hour. Would be interested to hear the perspective on UK HNers who were aorund before/after they implemented this.

And they're using it more and more:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-13426799

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I must say I've long assumed that they also used police cars for flow control - now of course they have the Highways Agency vehicles¹ which look so much like police cars as to cause the same slowing to <70mph from what's often an average in the outer lanes of 85.

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¹ -- I can't see how the Highways Agency are not running fowl of the law against "impersonating a police officer" by the livery of their vehicles.

Notice how truckers work with highway congestion too. They tend to slow down to allow congestion in front of them to flow. This might look at first to allow braking space for the big trucks but I think it has a lot to do with the traffic flow as well.

Truckers don't like to change gears. It's much more efficient for them to stay in a lower gear and coast at a consistent speed than it is to constantly change gears and brake.

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