This paper presents a study where an instrumented vehicle was used to measure the variability of gap-acceptance behaviour. The vehicle was developed at the Transportation Research Group at the University of Southampton, England. It is equipped with video monitoring systems, a radar rangefinder, and a laser speedometer, which allow it to make a dynamic record of driver behaviour relative to other vehicles. In the experiment, each driver was asked at random intervals if he/she was considering changing lanes. For cases where the answer was "Yes", the data records were marked, and associated data on vehicle separations etc. were used to compile data sets of `gap rejected', if no lane change occurred, and `gap accepted', if lane change occurred. A special verbalisation technique was used so that the driver could give extra information about the strength of unmeasurable variables relevant to overtaking decisions. Two drivers took part, each driving for about two hours; records of 174 rejected gaps and 147 accepted gaps were compiled. A logistic regression model was used to analyse the drivers' responses. One of the main purposes of the study was to compile a driver behaviour model for implementation in a simulation model of motorway behaviour. One such model, FLOWSIM, has been developed, based on fuzzy reasoning.
Samenvatting