01589939

Component

https://doi.org/10.3141/2587-16

In the past, researchers have investigated ways to increase the conspicuity of two-wheelers (i.e., motorcycles, mopeds, scooters, and other motorized vehicles) under daytime conditions. However, only a few researchers have analyzed their conspicuity under nighttime conditions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the visibility of two-wheelers encountered by left-turning motorists at urban intersections under nighttime conditions, and compare them with other hazards. A low-fidelity simulator was used to collect data and perform evaluations. The simulator presented a series of videos from a motorist’s perspective, while a passenger vehicle was positioned in the permitted left-turn lane at a signalized intersection. During each video the study participants were instructed to determine whether a left-turn maneuver was safe under the given set of nighttime traffic conditions. The response times for 30 participants were recorded and totaled 627 responses. The observed response times to a two-wheeler were not different from the response times to a passenger vehicle with two headlights. However, the response times were significantly shorter than the times to recognize no hazard or a two-wheeler with no headlight. The conspicuity issues that pertain to two-wheelers in daytime and nighttime conditions were not observed to be the same. Further, the same treatments proposed for two-wheelers in daytime conditions may not be as beneficial or even needed during nighttime driving.

01586671

16-2805

English

pp 133–140

2016

Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board

9780309441391

Print

Figures (4) ; References (20) ; Tables (4)

Highway safety; Left turns; Mopeds; Motorcycles; Night visibility; Signalized intersections; Two wheeled vehicles; Urban areas

Highways; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Safety and Human Factors; Vehicles and Equipment

TRIS, TRB, ATRI

Jan 12 2016 5:14PM

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