In this paper, we illustrate how second order traffic flow models, in our case the Aw-Rascle equations, can be used to reproduce empirical observations such as the capacity drop at merges and solve related optimal control problems. To this aim, we propose a model for on-ramp junctions and derive suitable coupling conditions. These are associated to the first order Godunov scheme to numerically study the well-known capacity drop effect, where the outflow of the system is significantly below the expected maximum. Control issues such as speed and ramp meter control are also addressed in a first discretize-then optimize framework.