United States Department of Transportation
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Improved Methods for Delineating Diverges in Work Zones
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2014-09-01
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[PDF-2.43 MB]
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TRIS Online Accession Number:01594281
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Edition:Final Report
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Abstract:This report presents results from an investigation regarding the impacts of various delineation methods on driver performance in properly identifying the condition and location of work zone diverges. The motivation for this research program stems from the needs to (1) understand the fundamental principles behind driver perception of traffic control devices in a work zone; (2) understand how the design and configuration of work zone traffic control devices interact with these principles to impact human performance; and (3) develop cost-effective screening methods to test new designs and configurations. To address these needs, a testing method was developed in which computer-rendered still images (near photo-realistic) of various work zone environments were briefly shown to participants who were asked to identify (1) the location of a diverge within a work zone and (2) its condition (i.e., open or closed) when given a very limited response time. To examine these issues, three separate but related experiments were conducted. In each, the responses from participants were collected and analyzed in terms of percent correct, several error types, and the observed latency (time delay) in making the ramp identification decision. In almost all circumstances delineation devices that maintained continuity and linearity throughout the desired path resulted in better human performance. The experiments also showed that when a construction project requires the full closure of a ramp then driver understanding of delineation becomes increasing challenging. Finally, in several instances, scenarios without delineation equipment showed greater errors. This observation indicates that the presence of equipment may provide additional cues signaling active work zones to drivers.
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