Safety Effects of Horizontal Curve Reliability Index

2020 ◽  
Vol 2674 (9) ◽  
pp. 627-636
Author(s):  
Scott Himes ◽  
Eric Donnell
Keyword(s):  
Reliability Index ◽  
Horizontal Curve ◽  
Mass Model ◽  
Crash Frequency ◽  
Horizontal Curves ◽  
Run Off ◽  
Single Vehicle ◽  
Green Book ◽  
Total Curve ◽  
The Relationship

Recent advancements in analytical processes have used probabilistic approaches to examine the efficacy of the point mass model (and other Green Book models) to develop reliability-based approaches for geometric design. However, there has been minimal research establishing the link between reliability measures and substantive safety (expressed through crash frequency). The objective of this paper is to use empirical data supporting the calculation of reliability index for existing horizontal curves and to estimate the relationship between reliability index and crash frequency. Other horizontal curve-related characteristics that may have an impact on crash frequency on horizontal curves for rural two-lane highways and rural freeway facilities are controlled for in the evaluation. The safety analysis showed that the wet pavement reliability index was significantly associated with crash frequency for total curve-related crashes, single-vehicle run-off-road crashes, rollover crashes, truck-related crashes, and weather-related crashes. The relationship was strongest for the reliability index in its continuous form, meaning that the effect is continuous across the range of wet pavement reliability that was observed.

Highway Alignment Parameters Design and Capacity Analysis on Two-Lane Highway

2014 ◽  
Vol 539 ◽  
pp. 860-866
Author(s):  
Jiang Liu
Keyword(s):  
Capacity Analysis ◽  
Horizontal Curve ◽  
Mountainous Areas ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Horizontal Curves ◽  
Percent Time ◽  
Simulation Results ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
Highway Alignment ◽  
The Relationship

A two-lane highway is an undivided highway with only one lane of traffic in each direction. Two-lane highways are one of the most common roadways at mountainous areas in China. Due to the wider range to choose the horizontal and vertical curves in the design of two-lane highways, the combination of both leads to larger differences on two-lane highway capacities. Thus, the highway alignments are one of the key factors which affect the two-lane highway capacities. According to the empirical data and existing studies, it is regarded that there is no impacts on the capacity for horizontal curves with a radius more than 400m and vertical curves with the gradient less than 3%. Two concepts are defined as effective bending and effective gradient which represent the extent the horizontal curve bends and the steepness of vertical curve respectively. The method to calculate effective bending of horizontal curve and steepness of vertical curve is given and its relevant properties are also discussed. According to the simulation results and the principle of speed differences, the effective bending and effective gradient have been classified into 7 and 6 levels, separately. As a result, there will be 42 combinations of different highway alignments of two-lane highways based on the different combinations of the effective bending and effective gradient. Under this circumstance, the relationship of speed-volume and volume-PTSF (percent time spend following) are obtained from the simulation results. Finally, the capacity of two-lane highway is given under different highway alignments of two-lane highway at mountainous areas in China.

Evaluation of design consistency on horizontal curves for two-lane state roads using bicycle-model and realistic parameters of driver behaviour

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Biljana Maljković
Keyword(s):  
Point Mass ◽  
Horizontal Curve ◽  
Vehicle Model ◽  
Mass Model ◽  
Driver Behaviour ◽  
Horizontal Alignment ◽  
Horizontal Curves ◽  
Road Design ◽  
Vehicle Path ◽  
Design Consistency

The loss of vehicle stability in horizontal curves is a clear indicator of horizontal alignment design inconsistency, which can easily be quantified by determining the margins of safety. The doctoral thesis presents an overview of current horizontal alignment design guidelines and most important research of the design consistency concept. The following significant shortcomings in current road design practice were noticed: selection of unrealistic relevant speeds, the assumption that drivers follow a path with a radius equal to curve radius and the application of too simple vehicle model, i.e. basic point mass model. To overcome the observed limitations, the new consistent design approach has been developed, with an emphasis on horizontal curves. The new approach is based on the margin of safety concept, improved in terms of using the bicycle vehicle model in combination with more realistic values of speed and vehicle path radii. The bicycle vehicle model considers longitudinal load transfer, on individual axles, due to grade and speed changes, i.e. factors affecting margins of safety that are completely ignored by the simple point mass model used so far. To collect the driver behaviour data, an experimental investigation was conducted on a segment of the two-lane state road DC1 (Croatia). Individual speeds and vehicle path radii achieved by representative sample of drivers were recorded with a highfrequency GPS device. Based on the analysis of recorded data, the implementation of naturalistic driver behaviour in the road design process is proposed through regression models for predicting operating speeds (for tangents and horizontal curves) and through the equation for calculating the critical path radius. The improvement of the safety margin concept has created the basis for designing horizontal curves with high level of safety, both for the values of available friction on modern pavements as well as for future measurements. Based on operating speed consistency criterion and improved safety criterion related to driving dynamic consistency, the graphs of applicable adjacent horizontal curve radii were developed. The results obtained showed that the values of minimum horizontal curve radii need to be increased and, finally, this analysis has provided a physical explanation of the most common causes of accidents in sharp horizontal curves.

Effect of Roadside Features on Single-Vehicle Roadway Departure Crashes on Rural Two-Lane Roads

2012 ◽  
Vol 2309 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yichuan Peng ◽  
Srinivas Reddy Geedipally ◽  
Dominique Lord
Keyword(s):  
Negative Binomial ◽  
Motor Vehicle ◽  
Large Body ◽  
Crash Frequency ◽  
Side Slope ◽  
Single Vehicle ◽  
Lateral Clearance ◽  
Slope Condition ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

One of the most important tasks in traffic safety is investigating the relationship between motor vehicle crashes and the geometric characteristics of roadways. A large body of previous work provides meaningful results on the impact of geometric design on crash frequency. However, little attention has been paid to the relationship between roadway departure crashes and relevant roadside features such as lateral clearance, side slope condition, and driveway density. The lack of roadside data for use in estimating rigorous statistical models has been a major obstacle to roadside safety research for many years. This study investigated the relationship between single-vehicle roadway departure crashes and roadside features. Two types of models were developed: a negative binomial model of crash frequency and a multinomial logit model of crash severity. The study used field data collected in four districts in Texas. The results showed that shoulder width, lateral clearance, and side slope condition had a significant effect on roadway departure crashes. Crash frequency and severity increased when lateral clearance or shoulder width decreased and when the side slope condition became worse. Driveway density was not found to have a significant influence on crash frequency or severity.

scholarly journals Conspicuity Research on the Highway Roadside Objects: A Simulator Study

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xuemei Chen ◽  
Zhonghua Wei ◽  
Xia Zhao ◽  
Mingyang Hao ◽  
Tongyang Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Driving Simulator ◽  
Visual Effects ◽  
Roadside Safety ◽  
Run Off ◽  
Single Vehicle ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Simulator Study ◽  
Basic Features ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Better Than

In a monotonous travelling environment, the single-vehicle run-off-roadside accidents occur easily. The injuries and fatalities caused by those accidents are significant components of the annual road casualties. The causation is the complex interaction of the visual effects on the roadside objects’ conspicuity. So the conspicuity enhancement needs to be considered in the roadside objects design to provide a temporary restoration of alertness and vigilance to drivers. Factors contributing to the conspicuity of the roadside objects were analyzed in this paper. A driving simulator study was conducted in order to extrapolate the relationship between the legibility distances and the objects and to quantify the conspicuity of the roadside objects different in basic features. The conclusions of this paper were firstly, a significant correlation existed between the mean legibility distance and the object’s size. The mean legibility distance was in a significant exponential proportion to the object’s size. Secondly, the triangle’s legibility was better than that of the rectangle and round contours. Only when the roadside object was combined with the suitable contour and size did the best visual quality come. To some extent, the conclusions could provide theoretical tools and strategies to optimize the dimensional design of the roadside objects in order to maintain the roadside safety.

Past testate amoeba communities in landslide mountain fens (Polish Carpathians): The relationship between shell types and sediment

The Holocene ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 095968362199464
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Marcisz ◽  
Krzysztof Buczek ◽  
Mariusz Gałka ◽  
Włodzimierz Margielewski ◽  
Matthieu Mulot ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Testate Amoebae ◽  
Mineral Matter ◽  
Testate Amoeba ◽  
Run Off ◽  
Number Of Factors ◽  
Depth To Water Table ◽  
Polish Carpathians ◽  
The Relationship

Landslide mountain fens formed in landslide depressions are dynamic environments as their development is disturbed by a number of factors, for example, landslides, slopewash, and surface run-off. These processes lead to the accumulation of mineral material and wood in peat. Disturbed peatlands are interesting archives of past environmental changes, but they may be challenging for providing biotic proxy-based quantitative reconstructions. Here we investigate long-term changes in testate amoeba communities from two landslide mountain fens – so far an overlooked habitat for testate amoeba investigations. Our results show that abundances of testate amoebae are extremely low in this type of peatlands, therefore not suitable for providing quantitative depth-to-water table reconstructions. However, frequent shifts of dominant testate amoeba species reflect dynamic lithological situation of the studied fens. We observed that high and stable mineral matter input into the peatlands was associated with high abundances of species producing agglutinated (xenosomic) as well as idiosomic shells which prevailed in the testate amoeba communities in both analyzed profiles. This is the first study that explores testate amoebae of landslide mountain fens in such detail, providing novel information about microbial communities of these ecosystems.

scholarly journals Factors Contributing to the Relationship between Driving Mileage and Crash Frequency of Older Drivers

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (23) ◽  
pp. 6643 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lee ◽  
Guldmann ◽  
Choi
Keyword(s):  
Negative Binomial ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Vehicle Miles Traveled ◽  
Crash Frequency ◽  
Rural Environments ◽  
Lower Likelihood ◽  
Conditional Autoregressive ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Binomial Models

As a characteristic of senior drivers aged 65 +, the low-mileage bias has been reported in previous studies. While it is thought to be a well-known phenomenon caused by aging, the characteristics of urban environments create more opportunities for crashes. This calls for investigating the low-mileage bias and scrutinizing whether it has the same impact on other age groups, such as young and middle-aged drivers. We use a crash database from the Ohio Department of Public Safety from 2006 to 2011 and adopt a macro approach using Negative Binomial models and Conditional Autoregressive (CAR) models to deal with a spatial autocorrelation issue. Aside from the low-mileage bias issue, we examine the association between the number of crashes and the built environment and socio-economic and demographic factors. We confirm that the number of crashes is associated with vehicle miles traveled, which suggests that more accumulated driving miles result in a lower likelihood of being involved in a crash. This implies that drivers in the low mileage group are involved in crashes more often, regardless of the driver’s age. The results also confirm that more complex urban environments have a higher number of crashes than rural environments.

Modeling Safety Effects of Horizontal Curve Design on Injury Severity of Single-Motorcycle Crashes with Mixed-Effects Logistic Model

2017 ◽  
Vol 2637 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chunfu Xin ◽  
Zhenyu Wang ◽  
Chanyoung Lee ◽  
Pei-Sung Lin
Keyword(s):  
Logistic Model ◽  
Injury Severity ◽  
Unobserved Heterogeneity ◽  
Mixed Effects ◽  
Severe Injury ◽  
Horizontal Curve ◽  
Random Parameters ◽  
Horizontal Curves ◽  
Curve Design ◽  
Motorcycle Crashes

Horizontal curves have been of great interest to transportation researchers because of expected safety hazards for motorcyclists. The impacts of horizontal curve design on motorcycle crash injuries are not well documented in previous studies. The current study aimed to investigate and to quantify the effects of horizontal curve design and associated factors on the injury severity of single-motorcycle crashes with consideration of the issue of unobserved heterogeneity. A mixed-effects logistic model was developed on the basis of 2,168 single-motorcycle crashes, which were collected on 8,597 horizontal curves in Florida for a period of 11 years (2005 to 2015). Four normally distributed random parameters (moderate curves, reverse curves, older riders, and male riders) were identified. The modeling results showed that sharp curves (radius <1,500 ft) compared with flat curves (radius ≥4,000 ft) tended to increase significantly the probability of severe injury (fatal or incapacitating injury) by 7.7%. In total, 63.8% of single-motorcycle crashes occurring on reverse curves are more likely to result in severe injury, and the remaining 26.2% are less likely to result in severe injury. Motorcyclist safety compensation behaviors (psychologically feeling safe, and then riding aggressively, or vice versa) may result in counterintuitive effects (e.g., vegetation and paved medians, full-access-controlled roads, and pavement conditions) or random parameters (e.g., moderate curve and reverse curve). Other significant factors include lighting conditions (darkness and darkness with lights), weekends, speed or speeding, collision type, alcohol or drug impairment, rider age, and helmet use.

Analysis on the Anti-Glare Plate Setting Distance on Horizontal Curve Sections of Expressway

2014 ◽  
Vol 587-589 ◽  
pp. 2156-2159 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tian Xiao ◽  
Ji Shu Sun ◽  
Can Zhang Jin
Keyword(s):  
Traffic Safety ◽  
Calculation Formula ◽  
Horizontal Curve ◽  
Distance Calculation ◽  
Element Simulation ◽  
Curved Section ◽  
Curve Radius ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Plate Distance ◽  
Glare Effect

Glare is one of the most important factors threating expressway traffic safety an night. The most commonly way to prevent glaring night is to set anti-glare plate. Different from the straight sections of expressway, the relationship between the front light of vehicles and the distance of anti-glare plate on the horizontal curved section has some-what changed. Through a lot of tests and finite element simulation, the relationship between the distance of anti-glare plate, horizontal curve radius and anti-glare effect were analyzed systematically. Distance calculation formula of anti-glare plate in horizontal curve sections was revised in this paper. The anti-glare plate distance requirement under different expressway alignment design indexes and its calculation formula was proposed. The achievement was beneficial to confirm the anti-glare effect and improve traffic safety. It can provide us with a reference and a supplement of the specification.

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