Assessment of Pedestrian Safety and Driver Behavior Near Automated Vehicles

Summary:

Driverless vehicles provide the transportation industry with fiscal and environmental benefits, but concerns remain regarding the interaction between driverless vehicles and drivers of manual vehicles. In Rochester, Minnesota, interactions between a driverless shuttle and other vehicles were observed in a pedestrian-heavy area of the city. Additional research included analyzing driver behavior relative to the shuttle and conducting lab tests to better understand what messaging the shuttle could provide surrounding traffic. The results demonstrated that potential dangers could be mitigated by increasing the speed of the shuttle and displaying clearer messaging on the back of the shuttle to alert drivers to the shuttle’s behavior.

Final Deliverables:

Related Materials:

• New Project: Assessment of Pedestrian Safety and Driver Behavior Near Automated Vehicles  - (Blog Post)

Related Research: