According to the analysis by the National Police Headquarters, roughly 40% of all road accident victims in Poland are vulnerable road users (VRU), i.e. pedestrians and cyclists. Their protection has become one of the priorities for action regarding road safety. For this purpose, various activities are carried out aimed not only at human behaviour or the development of modern and safe road infrastructures but also at the development of modern vehicles, including advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). In order to identify the limitations of the currently available driver assistance systems, designed to respond to VRU, research was carried out under the project name, “PEDICRASH: Safety aspects of VRU in CAD automated vehicles.” The project was aimed at increasing users’ awareness (both pedestrians and drivers) of the limitations of ADAS by analysing barriers and indicating recommendations allowing for more effective protection of pedestrians and cyclists due to the identified operating limitations of these systems. The research focused on the autonomous emergency braking (AEB) system and its potential impact on the level of road safety, with particular emphasis on VRU.

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Past research shows that age and driving experience has a significant impact on on-road behavior. Both reaction time, as well as visual-motor coordination and speed of decision making, play an important role with regard to safety. Consequently, research in this area has been carried out for many years. However, there are still very few studies on the impact of these variables on the speed and way of taking control of an automated vehicle. The purpose of the study designed at the Motor Transport Institute was therefore, including but not limited to, verification of the hypothesis concerning the relevance of age and experience to psychomotor skills and its impact on adaptation to automation. The research involved tools for testing psychomotor skills (reaction time, eye-hand coordination) considered in driver psychological tests. The experimental part was carried out with a passenger car simulator, where the driver's behavior was verified under a specific on-road situation, including control takeover. As expected, the analyses proved that age and experience are important factors for both control takeover and way of reaction. Deficits and some elements related to inexperience were found in older and younger drivers, respectively, and those had a significant impact on the analyzed variables.

In accordance with the requirements of the NHTSA guidelines on Level 3 automation, the comfortable control transition times is about 40 seconds. The data obtained so far are consistent with the assumption that the situation is better when drivers receive a warning about critical events than when they have to take over control unexpectedly. How these variables are shaped in the presence of distractors and what influences psychological factors have on these aspects remains unknown. For this purpose, a research experiment was developed in which control was taken over when the driver was additionally forced to perform the indicated activity (e.g. by looking away from the road), or when road conditions made it impossible to focus on the road. Psychological (temperament) and psychomotor variables (reaction time, hand–eye coordination) were controlled. The study was conducted on active road traffic participant drivers (N=95). Not only the time of taking control was analyzed, but also the way that may have a significant impact on road safety. The results revealed a significant influence of distractors on the manner control is taken over. In the conditions without distractors, the subjects were more likely to take over control than to cause automatic braking.

Many tasks that until recently could only be performed by humans are now entrusted to machines. Automation plays an increasingly important role in many areas of life, and its special role is observed in broadly understood transport, affecting the mobility, behaviour, and safety of drivers. Faced with the threat of a large number of accidents, deaths, and injuries, vehicles equipped with driver-assistance systems, the so-called ADAS (advanced driver-assistance system), are a significant support for the driver in reacting to the unexpected situations. The studies conducted so far indicate that the experience of using these systems may increase not only the comfort but most of all the safety of road users. In Poland, such analyses are still a challenge. The aim of the study designed by scientists from the Motor Transport Institute was to analyse the impact of the experience in using a vehicle equipped with systems on the speedy adaptation to the use of new driver-assistance systems. The adaptation process for the use of three systems was taken into account: adaptive cruise control, blind spot detection system, and lane keeping assistant. The research was carried out in real traffic. Particular attention was paid to the reactions of people who have no experience with the use of driver-assistance systems in vehicles, compared to those who have used these systems before. Proprietary questionnaires on the drivers’ feelings were used for the analyses. As expected, the analyses showed that experience with driver-assistance systems is an important factor influencing the speed of adaptation and the sense of comfort in using the systems.