The aim of the SARI project is to better inform drivers about losses of control on the open road, which is where two thirds of fatal accidents occur in France. One of the assumptions is that drivers perceive road difficulties poorly and are then surprised or react inappropriately. The objectiveis to correlate levels of risk of loss of control in bends with road characteristics and give drivers circumstantial warnings to urge them from a normal level of attention to a more alert level. Two steps are necessary toachieve this aim: develop diagnostic methods to identify the most dangerous bends; adapt the signing or devise new warning systems that catch drivers' attention and prompt them to slow down. For the diagnostic part, the Alertinfra method used in France is presented; it triggers alerts based on the geometrical characteristics of a bend. The new diagnostic method proposed uses a test vehicle to determine the maximum permissible speed througha bend. For the signing and warning part, the method applied in France since 2002 differentiates signing according to the difference between the theoretical speed of approach and in the bend. The warning method derived from the SARI project is a dynamic warning system that is triggered only when the speed or the transverse position of the vehicle approaching the benddoes not comply with the established limits. With these methods, it will soon be possible to justify a speed limit by a true level of risk to drivers.
Abstract