In recent years there has been a dramatic increase in the use of new technologies and ‘expert’ systems in transport (ETSC, 1999; ERTICO, 2002). For example, a wide variety of in-vehicle information systems are available that can provide active navigational information, or warn drivers of traffic congestion on their planned route. Other equipment can be fitted to vehicles that will prevent the vehicle being driven over a certain maximum speed, or to help the driver to maintain a pre-determined speed - either above or below the speed limit. Importantly, such systems can be either ‘mandatory’ (that is compulsory, for example, having laws that requires lorries to have a speed limiter and tachograph fitted) or provided as options that can typically be switched on or off by the driver. It is now possible to equip a vehicle to provide the driver with a mobile office that can receive phone calls, e-mails and even moving pictures of ‘live’ sporting events. There is a similar expansion in the number and complexity of new systems that can be mounted at the roadside to monitor a driver’s behaviour (such as driving over the speed limit, close-following, or red-light running), While such systems can be used to advise (or warn) drives about their driving behaviours, they can also be used for enforcement purposes. The rapid spread and growing sophistication of such systems may have serious implications for the safety and efficiency of the road network and therefore the attitudes of drivers towards their use and introduction are important; especially with regard to those systems that are increasingly being used for enforcement purposes. As a result the SARTRE 3 questionnaire included a small number of new questions that were specifically designed to provide information on drivers’ attitudes to such systems; some of which are currently being used in some countries, as well new systems that could be developed and used in the future. However, it is important to recognise that within the different countries taking part there are very sizeable differences in the current use of such systems. In some countries navigation and congestion systems are already widely available, although not used by every driver, and speed cameras are commonplace, while in other countries few, if any, systems are used. Such differences are likely to have a strong influence on the attitudes of the drivers in different countries. In addition, most respondents might have no previous experience with these systems though they were available. In comparison with questions concerned in other chapters, this put those respondents in a much more challenging situation, especially because the descriptions of the systems were non-specific. Specifically, the respondent with no prior experience had to imagine specific features of a given system, and we have no information about their assumptions. It should be noted that earlier phases of the SARTRE programme (e.g. SARTRE 1 and 2) were not as concerned with such issues as the current survey. This means that, unlike other chapters, there is limited opportunity to see how drivers’ attitudes might have changed during the time between the various surveys. (Author/publisher)
Abstract