Identifying Demographical Effects on Speed Patterns in Work Zones Using Smartphone Based Audio Warning Message System

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this research is to investigate the impacts of drivers' demographic factors on speed patterns in response to a smartphone based warning message, while driving through the advance warning area of a work zone. Methodology:A smartphone application was developed using Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) App Inventor 2, which was used to provide test drivers with a warming message on traffic control and incident awareness. Twenty-four subjects with different demographic features (different gender, age, education background, and driving experience) were recruited to drive through an advance warning area of a work zone twice in two scenarios (with and without the warning message). The advance warning area was divided into three segments for the convenience of analysing the significant difference in subjects' reactions to the warning messages and the static traffic control signs, in terms of speed patterns. Findings:Under a traditional traffic control, drivers' driving speed patterns were not significantly sensitive to the four studied socio-demographic features; but their mean driving speeds and speed variance were noticeable higher than in the situation with an audio warning message. When the smartphone-based messages were provided, drivers drove noticeably slower within the work zone, and the variance became narrower in the most studies of sociodemographic features. Experienced drivers and highly educated drivers drove significantly slower after receiving a warning message from the second and third segment (AWM 2 and 3). Conclusion:The smartphone-based warning messages were able to help drivers to control their driving speed better for cautious driving in a work zone area, especially for the experienced and highly educated drivers driving through a merging area and an activity area of workers.

Effect of In-Vehicle Audio Warning System on Driver’s Speed Control Performance in Transition Zones from Rural Areas to Urban Areas

“…When using the in-vehicle warning system in work zones, the previous studies mostly focused on the impacts of drivers’ demographical factors (e.g., gender, education, driving experience and age) on their speed patterns and the effect of enhancing the traffic safety in the work zones. The results indicated that the drivers’ socio-demographic factors could not significantly affect their speed patterns, but the driving performance, such as mean driving speeds, speed variance and deceleration, would be further investigated either in simulation environments or on real roads [ 37 , 38 , 39 ]. Liu et al also mentioned that drivers’ safety could benefit substantially from the technological advances in in-vehicle warning information systems.…”

Untitled

“…Angle and rear-end crashes account for about 35 % in total in work zones, the major causes of which are drivers' failure to Submitted to Civil Engineering Research Journal July 23, 2017 follow the speed limits and traffic controls on lane merging. Another cause is the presence of large trucks that obstruct the sight of other vehicles in the relatively narrow construction zone areas, which could lead to multi-vehicle collisions [6][7][8][9].…”

Calibration of Car-Following Models Considering the Impacts of Warning Messages from Tablet/Smartphone Application

“…The effects of the corresponding messages on driving behaviors have been studied in different situations, such as smart warning messages at a work zone advance warning area [17]- [19] and activity area [20], and the messages for pedestrian crossings [21], STOP sign intersection [22], and traffic signals at intersections [23] [24]. These messages could be provided by Dedicated Short Range Communication (DSRC) technologies using a dedicated device such as the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) [25], a tablet/smartphone application [26], etc.…”