Improving the effectiveness of nighttime temporary traffic control warning devices, volume 2 : evaluation of nighttime mobile warning lights.

Details

• Creators:
  Steele, Douglas A. ; Zabecki, Jessica Marcon ; Zimmerman, Laura
• Corporate Creators:
  Applied Research Associates, Inc.
• Corporate Contributors:
  United States. Federal Highway Administration ; Illinois. Dept. of Transportation. Bureau of Materials and Physical Research
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  Barricades Behavior Drums (Containers) Highway Safety Lighting Night Temporary Structures Traffic Channelization Traffic Control Devices Visual Perception Warning Devices Work Zone Traffic Control

  More +
• Publication/ Report Number:
  FHWA-ICT-13-032 ; ICT-13-032 ; UILU-ENG-2013-2033
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  Illinois
• Corporate Publisher:
  Illinois Center for Transportation
• Abstract:
  Vehicle-mounted warning lights for nighttime mobile highway operations provide critical protection to workers and the driving
  
  public. Alerting the traveling public of the approaching work activity and providing guidance is vital to maintaining safety and
  
  mobility. Previous research conducted for IDOT on mobile lane closures (Steele and Vavrik 2009) identified driver confusion
  
  as a concern to the safety of nighttime highway operations. Users are subject to warning lights from multiple agencies with
  
  varying characteristics and configurations, but we know little about driver comprehension of these signals and their influence
  
  on driver behavior.
  
  Applied Research Associates, Inc. (ARA) studied the effectiveness of warning lights on nighttime highway operations,
  
  including mobile lane closures, incident responses, and police activities, by reviewing pertinent literature, performing
  
  observational and experimental field studies, and conducting driver surveys and focus groups of driver perceptions and
  
  behavior in response to nighttime mobile operations. We used a cognitive model of driver mental processes to analyze this
  
  information and better understand the interaction between warning lights and driver perception and behavior, and to identify
  
  and evaluate potential improvements to current practice.
  
  The research showed that drivers view current vehicle-mounted warning lights as highly visible, attention-getting, and
  
  effective at conveying the message caution/alert. However, intense lights can cause discomfort glare and multiple light sets
  
  on individual vehicles, or multiple vehicles at a location, can be distracting, annoying, or anxiety-inducing. Complex visual
  
  scenes can confuse drivers and take longer to process cognitively, leading to slower reaction times. Often, information
  
  provided by flashing arrows, signs, and changeable message signs can be interfered with by other warning lights on the same
  
  vehicle.
  
  Suggestions for improvement from the focus groups centered primarily on reducing the number of flashing lights, or
  
  synchronizing their flashing, on individual vehicles, reducing the intensity of specific lights, sequential flashing of arrows
  
  between multiple trucks in a convoy, and incorporating directional motion in light bars. Researchers were not able to test
  
  some of the ideas due to limitations of current device technology; however, field experiments on several suggested concepts
  
  showed the potential to improve driver perception, comprehension, and behavior by modifying the number, intensity, and
  
  synchronization of lights on individual vehicles, as well as between vehicles.
  
  
• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  R27-108
• Collection(s):
  US Transportation Collection
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:5cbeb5c2ae45037c359341fb38ac603db5e8071107d391aa2cb046b73844660d
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/28798/dot_28798_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 832.43 KB ]