A technique is described that was developed to determine user attitudes toward various roadside objects located along urban arterials. A photographic retouching technique was used on slides of the roadside to simulate experimentally the removal of selected portions of the roadside such as billboards, on-premise and off-premise signs, utility poles, and overhead wires. Eighty observers were asked to rate the aesthetic quality of the roadside by a set of semantic differential adjectives. In addition, eye movement recordings were obtained to determine how patterns of attention shifted depending on the removal of various roadside elements. Finally, observers were asked their opinions on a variety of urban problems to place the issue of roadside aesthetics in some context. Analyses of the data suggest that the present technique holds promise for those who wish to investigate the visual impact of various portions of the environment with a greater degree of experimental control over the design elements involved. The visual simulation device for pretesting user response to proposed changes in the roadside are discussed as well as the implications of the present research for traffic safety. /author/
Abstract