Difference between "tráfico"/"tránsito" and "embotellamiento"

Question

I saw in one of the lessons that "embotellamiento" was translated into "traffic". Although some people would use the phrase: "I got stuck in traffic", wouldn't it be more correctly translated to "traffic jam", while the term "traffic" should be reserved for the translation of "tráfico" or "tránsito" (Latin America)?

Answer 1

El departamento de tránsito es el que regula el tráfico, para que no se produzcan embotellamientos.

Muy bien dicho - 005faa61, Jul 3, 2013

Answer 2

"embotellamiento" is almost surely a rough calque on the English "bottleneck"--for auto traffic anyway.

I would've sworn I wrote something about that "calque"... here. Am I being "moderated"??? Please, just let me know. I wouldn't like to be paying attention to petty stuff. Thanks. - chileno, Jul 6, 2013

Answer 3

But wouldn't it be correct then to use to phrase: "hora de máximo tránsito" for "rush hour"?

I don't know if that is correct somewhere, but in Spain we say "el tráfico a la hora punta". .. Estuve atascado en el tráfico de la hora punta - I was stuck in rush hour traffic - RafaelNoiret, Jul 3, 2013

I made a mistake the first time, it is DE la hora punta, like in my example. Sorry. - RafaelNoiret, Jul 3, 2013

In Latin America we say tráfico a la hora pico. - francobollo, Jul 3, 2013

Thanks Franco, good to know. - RafaelNoiret, Jul 3, 2013

Thanks for the answers :) - soul71, Jul 3, 2013

Answer 4

But wouldn't it be correct then to use to phrase: "hora de máximo tránsito" for "rush hour"?

No. As Chileno says, transito refers to the system of regulation of movement of vehicles on roadways. We also use circulación to indicate movement and direction of vehicles such as one/two way streets

Answer 5

Embotellamiento means a traffic jam. Tráfico is just normal vehicle circulation. There could be mucho tráfico, tráfico normal o tráfico lento o pesado, depending on the circumstances.

Eso :) - RafaelNoiret, Jul 3, 2013

Answer 6

Hi Soul,

For me (Spanish from Spain), Tráfico refers to the act of cars and vehicles driving through the streets. It doesn't necessarily imply that there is a traffic jam, whereas embotellamiento does. I hope that makes sense. Tránsito is something else entirely for me.

Answer 7

Another interesting etymology:

traffic (n.)

*c.1500, "trade, commerce," from Middle French trafique (mid-15c.), from Italian traffico (early 14c.), from trafficare "carry on trade," of uncertain origin, perhaps from a Vulgar Latin *transfricare "to rub across" (from Latin trans- "across" + fricare "to rub"), with the original sense of the Italian verb being "touch repeatedly, handle."

Or the second element may be an unexplained alteration of Latin facere "to make, do."

Klein suggests ultimate derivation of the Italian word from Arabic tafriq "distribution." Meaning "people and vehicles coming and going" first recorded 1825. Traffic jam is 1917, ousting earlier traffic block (1895).*

OEtD