Final report

Maryland. State Highway Administration. Research Division

PDF

This research studies the effectiveness of a dynamic message sign (DMS) using a driving

simulator. Over 100 subjects from different socio-economic and age groups were recruited to

drive the simulator under different traffic and driving conditions and various travel-related

DMS messages. The subjects drove between a specified pair of origin and destination while

choosing their own route in a fairly realistic 12 × 12 mi2

(20 × 20 km2) network that included

road signs, traffic signals, three-dimensional buildings and trees, and other roadside objects.

Their driving behavior, including changes in driving speed, route choice and diversion, and

travel time perception in the presence of DMS were studied. In addition to the driving simulator

experiment, a stated preference analysis was conducted through three sequential survey

questionnaires. The questionnaire data was utilized to better understand drivers’ perceptions of

the efficiency-related attributes. The study concluded that DMS is a safe device, since drivers

did not reduce their speed significantly to read the DMS contents. Furthermore, quantitative

information provided by DMS affected drivers’ route choice significantly and drivers were

quite sensitive to travel time change. However, the diversion rate due to a second DMS with

qualitative information was much less than what the subjects stated in the survey.

US Transportation Collection

SP209B4K