Aim of the paper is to investigate, by means of a dynamic driving simulator experiment, road users behavior at rural intersections in relation to different perceptual measures designed for increasing hazard detection. In the experiment, ten different configuration of tangents were tested: alt1) base tangent, alt2) four leg base intersection, alt3) intersection withreduced sight distance, alt4-10) intersections with perceptual treatments. The VERA high-fidelity dynamic-driving simulator, operating at the TEST Road Safety Laboratory located in Naples (Italy), was used. Analysis of the results was performed using two different approaches: a) explorative description of data by cluster analysis; b) inferential procedures about population using statistical tests. Results showed that the speed behavior inthe tangents was significantly affected by the presence of the intersections and by the perceptual treatments. Intersection without perceptual treatments significantly affected driver speeds in the 250 m preceding the intersection. Perceptual treatments helped the driver to detect the intersection earlier and to slow down. Dragon teeth markings, colored intersection area, and raised median island performed better than the other perceptual treatments. They produced significant average speed reduction in the 150 mpreceding the intersection ranging between 16 km/h and 23 km/h. Study results support real world implementation of perceptual measures in the ruralintersections, because they are low cost and fast implementation measureswith high potential to be cost-effective.
Abstract