The overall structure of this book is intended to be as clear as possible, ranging from a description of general issues with regard to traffic signs to consideration of more specific topics. In Chapter 2, transport signs will be put into context by considering their history. The next three chapters will examine signing and fundamentals: design issues, the effectiveness of transport signs at a localized/behavioral level, and the effectiveness of signing within the wider transport system. Because the book also considers transport signing in environments other than highways, the next two chapters will consider signing issues in railway operations, including the issues of signals passed at danger and aviation signing. Following this, more specific signing issues will be considered: visual factors, aging, and signing, attention and motivational factors involved in transport signing. Subsequently, the focus slightly broadens to consider signing within a wider societal context by considering such factors as cross-cultural differences with respect to sign design and comprehension, legislation, and international standardization. New technologies exert a massive impact upon all transportation systems, so the final chapters examine this topic. Chapter 12 and Chapter 13 consider Variable Message Signs in the road environment. Chapter 14 introduces Intelligent Transport Systems and considers how such technologies might replace, or at least change the role of, traditional transport signs. Chapter 15 is more speculative and considers a range of fundamental Human Factors implications with regards to these new technologies with transport systems as a whole. Finally, in Chapter 16 the authors and editors bring together chapter authors' reflections regarding their contributions.
Samenvatting