Operational Evaluation of Advisory Bike Lane Treatment on Road User Behavior in Ottawa, Canada

Author(s):  
Ali Kassim ◽  
Alex Culley ◽  
Shawn McGuire

The City of Ottawa has been investigating design solutions to facilitate the addition of cycling facilities, while maintaining parking, to roadways with limited right-of-ways. A pilot project to install advisory bike lanes was initiated. The purpose of this study is to determine how new pavement markings (advisory bike lanes) influence cyclist and motorist interactions and positioning, especially with respect to the distance between motorists and cyclists when passing. The study presents a before–after evaluation of two contrasting pavement indications. Video data were collected in two phases (pre- and post- treatment); each phase consisted of two different days. A number of safety performance parameters were used to assess whether safer conditions existed after the new treatment was installed: (i) the lateral distance between the motor vehicle and cyclist, (ii) the lateral distance between the cyclist and curbside edge/cyclist and buffer edge line, and (iii) the speed of the cyclist and motor vehicle. The findings indicate that the advisory bike lanes created more favorable conditions for cyclist safety and for motor vehicle compliance. These findings are (i) motorists passed cyclists with a greater lateral separation distance, (ii) cyclists positioned themselves further from parking edge line and rode in the middle of the bike lane, (iii) motor vehicle traveling speed decreased (the 85th percentile speed decreased by 5.2% after the installation of the advisory bike lane), and (iv) average cyclist speed increased (the average cyclist speed increased by 7.7% after the installation of the advisory bike lane).

Author(s):  
Ali Kassim ◽  
Karim Ismail ◽  
Shawn McGuire

The purpose of this study is to determine how new pavement markings (central sharrows and indication of “dooring zone”) influence cyclist and motorist interactions and positioning, especially with respect to the distance cyclists travel from the parking edge line. The markings are designed to discourage cyclists from riding in the dooring-zone area and to ride in the center of the travel lane to avoid serious safety hazards. A number of safety performance parameters were used to assess whether safer conditions existed after the new treatment was installed. Safe motorist behavior was defined as: (a) motor vehicle following a cyclist with or without visible oncoming traffic in the opposing lane, and (b) motor vehicle passing a cyclist at a safe lateral distance. Safe cyclist behavior was defined as: cyclist riding in the lane position indicated by the central sharrows and outside of the dooring-zone area. The findings indicate that the central sharrows and dooring-zone markings created more favorable conditions for cyclist safety and for motorist compliance. Cyclists rode further from the parking edge line and closer to the sharrows that were marked in the center of the travel lane, and motorists were shown to be less likely to pass and more likely to follow cyclists.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 465-465
Author(s):  
Jennifer Zakrajsek ◽  
Lisa Molnar ◽  
David Eby ◽  
David LeBlanc ◽  
Lidia Kostyniuk ◽  
...  

Abstract Motor vehicle crashes represent a significant public health problem. Efforts to improve driving safety are multifaceted, focusing on vehicles, roadways, and drivers with risky driving behaviors playing integral roles in each area. As part of a study to create guidelines for developing risky driving countermeasures, 480 drivers (118 young/18-25, 183 middle-aged/35-55, 179 older/65 and older) completed online surveys measuring driving history, risky driving (frequency of engaging in distracted [using cell phone, texting, eating/drinking, grooming, reaching/interacting] and reckless/aggressive [speeding, tailgating, failing to yield right-of-way, maneuvering unsafely, rolling stops] driving behaviors), and psychosocial characteristics. A cluster analysis using frequency of the risky behaviors and seat belt use identified five risky behavior-clusters: 1) rarely/never distracted-rarely/never reckless/aggressive (n=392); 2) sometimes distracted-rarely/never reckless/aggressive (n=33); 3) sometimes distracted-sometimes reckless/aggressive (n=40); 4) often/always distracted-often/always reckless/aggressive (n=11); 5) no pattern (n=4). Older drivers were more likely in the first/lowest cluster (93.8% of older versus 84.2% of middle-aged and 59.3% of young drivers; p<.0001). Fifteen older drivers participated in a follow-up study in which their vehicles were equipped with a data acquisition system that collected objective driving and video data of all trips for three weeks. Analysis of video data from 145 older driver trips indicated that older drivers engaged in at least one distracted behavior in 115 (79.3%) trips. While preliminary, this suggests considerably more frequent engagement in distracted driving than self-reported and that older drivers should not be excluded from consideration when developing risky driving behavior countermeasures. Full study results and implications will be presented.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Merianne Spencer

This report highlights differences in motor vehicle traffic death rates by sex, age group and the type of road-user.


Author(s):  
Ioannis Kaparias ◽  
Rui Wang

Inspired by developments in urban planning, the concept of “shared space” has recently emerged as a way of creating a better public realm. This is achieved through a range of streetscape treatments aimed at asserting the function of streets as places by facilitating pedestrian movement and lowering vehicle traffic volumes and speeds. The characteristics of streets with elements of shared space point to the conjecture that traffic conditions and road user perceptions may be different to those on streets designed according to more conventional principles, and this is likely to have an impact on the quality of service. The aim of this paper is, therefore, to perform an analysis in relation to level of service (LOS) and to investigate how this may change as a result of the implementation of street layouts with elements of shared space. Using video data from the Exhibition Road site in London during periods before and after its conversion from a conventional dual carriageway to a layout featuring several elements of shared space, changes in relation to LOS for both vehicle traffic and pedestrians are investigated, by applying the corresponding methods from the 2010 Highway Capacity Manual. The results suggest that streets with elements of shared space provide a much improved pedestrian experience, as expressed by higher LOS ratings, but without compromising the quality of vehicle traffic flow, which, in fact, also sees slight improvements.


2017 ◽  
Vol 2645 (1) ◽  
pp. 104-112
Author(s):  
François Bélisle ◽  
Nicolas Saunier ◽  
Guillaume-Alexandre Bilodeau ◽  
Sebastien le Digabel

This paper proposes a new method for automatically counting vehicle turning movements based on video tracking, expanding on previous work on optimization of parameters for road user trajectory extraction and on automated trajectory clustering. The counting method is composed of three main steps: an automated tracker that extracts vehicle trajectories from video data, an automated trajectory clustering algorithm, and an optimization algorithm. The proposed method was applied to obtain turning movement counts in three typical traffic engineering case studies in Canada representing industry-type conditions. These exhibited varying levels of tracking difficulty, ranging from a single-lane off-ramp to a six-movement intersection with a stop and a right-turn channel. Because of a limitation of the data set, giving flows per movement and not per lane, all sites were chosen with a single lane per movement. The 3-h morning peak period was used in the case studies. The results show an average weighted generalization error of 12% for more than 3,700 vehicles automatically analyzed for more than 8 h of video, ranging from 9.5% to 19.5%. The generalization error is on average 8.6% (and as low as 6.0% per movement) for the 3,084 uninterrupted vehicles that are in plain view of the camera. This paper describes in detail the methodology used and discusses the factors that affect counting performance and how to improve counting accuracy in further research.


2015 ◽  
Vol 74 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ishtiak Al Mamoon ◽  
A. K. M Muzahidul Islam ◽  
Sabariah Baharun

In recent years, medical call centers have started using IP telephony services to minimize the overhead telecom expenses. However, the advent of Voice-Over-IP (VoIP) technology has also created a major discontinuity in telecommunication sector due to illegal VoIP or gray calls, causing a great impact on the voice market. This brought few challenges to the countries’ regulatory bodies. In this paper, we spell out one of the key challenges: in order to mitigate illegal VoIP calls, whether the regulatory body should allow IP telephony to be practiced for both domestic and international voice driven tele-medical consultation  center operation combined or separately. We propose architecture and schemes for a medical call center. We also propose some guidelines and/or policies for both call center operator and the telecom regulatory authority. The proposed architecture and schemes are implemented in a pilot project basis in two phases and the test bed result is presented in this article.


2000 ◽  
Vol 1705 (1) ◽  
pp. 116-121 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard A. Retting ◽  
Hugh W. McGee ◽  
Charles M. Farmer

Motor vehicle crashes on curved roadway sections occur more frequently and tend to be more severe than those on straight sections. Speed is a significant factor in many crashes that occur on curves. The effects on traffic speeds of special pavement markings intended to reduce speeds on freeway exit ramps with horizontal curves were examined. An experimental pavement marking pattern was employed that narrowed the lane width of both the curve and a portion of the tangent section leading into the curve by use of a gradual inward taper of existing edgeline or exit gore pavement markings or both. Traffic speeds were analyzed before and after installation of the pavement markings at four experimental ramps in New York and Virginia. Results indicated that the markings were generally effective in reducing speeds of passenger vehicles and large trucks. The markings were associated with significant reductions in the percentages of passenger vehicles and large trucks exceeding posted exit-ramp advisory speeds.


2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thuso Mphela ◽  
Thamani Mokoka ◽  
Kefalotse Dithole

According to WHO, more than 300,000 pedestrian deaths were recorded globally, accounting for 22% of total road user fatalities in 2019. In 2017, Botswana pedestrian fatalities were considerably high at 32% of the total road accident fatalities recorded. This paper investigated causes, distribution, risk, and offers potential solutions to pedestrian accidents and fatalities in Botswana. Secondary data extracted from different sources were analyzed through descriptive statistics and stepwise regression modeling was performed to determine significant explanators of pedestrian fatalities. The results show that the “car” vehicle type is responsible for 55% of pedestrian collisions. There is a higher chance of pedestrian fatality when collision is with a lorry with a trailer. On the other hand, driver negligence is also blamed for 55% of pedestrian accidents. Ninety percent (90%) of pedestrian fatalities happen away from road junctions. Truck, fuel imports and nighttime accidents were identified as significant regressors for pedestrian fatalities. Overall, pedestrians are six times more likely to perish in a collision than their counterparts. Adopting sustainable road infrastructure patterns that promote pedestrian safety will foster mode split. Improving road lighting and infusing pedestrian safety into driver training curriculum, while strengthening road traffic law enforcement, will lead to improved pedestrian safety. Future studies should disaggregate pedestrian safety analysis to account for location-specific variations.


1962 ◽  
Vol 84 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Moissis ◽  
P. Griffith

This paper describes quantitatively one stage of the flow development process in equipment working with two-phase mixtures. The kinetics of a Taylor bubble, as it rises behind a series of other bubbles in a gas-liquid slug flow, have been determined. The rise velocity of a bubble is expressed as a function of separation distance from the bubble ahead of it. Using this information, the pattern of development of bubbles which initially enter a tube at regular intervals is determined by means of finite difference calculations. The density and, to a first approximation the pressure drop, of the developing flow are then calculated from continuity considerations. The density distribution in the entrance region is found to be a function of flow rates of the two phases, of distance from the inlet, and of initial bubble size. Density calculated by the present theory is compared with experimental measurements by the present and other investigators. Theory and experiments are in good agreement.


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