VEHICULAR PATHS IN CERTAIN TYPES OF INTERSECTION AREAS

DESIGN FEATURES OF VARIOUS WISCONSIN INTERCHANGES WERE STUDIED IN TERMS OF DRIVER REACTION. BASED ON MOTION PICTURES AND STATISTICAL ANALYSES, THE FOLLOWING CONCLUSIONS WERE MADE. (1) WEAVING LANES SHOULD BE OF SUFFICIENT LENGTH TO ALLOW TRAFFIC TO BLEND IN WITH FREE FLOWING TRAFFIC RATHER THAN DART IN AS REQUIRED ON SHORT SEGMENTS. APPROACHES SHOULD BE TANGENT OR OF ONLY A SMALL DEGREE OF CURVATURE. IF NECESSARY, OVERHEAD SIGNS SHOULD BE ERECTED TO CHANNELIZE TRAFFIC PROPERLY PRIOR TO ENTERING THE WEAVING SECTION TO AVOID THE UNNECESSARY INTERNAL FRICTION CAUSED BY WEAVING FROM THE OUTSIDE LANES. (2) A DRIVER SHOULD NEVER BE CONFRONTED WITH MORE THAN ONE PROBLEM OR DECISION AT A TIME. IF MORE THAN TWO ALTERNATIVES ARE AVAILABLE TO THE DRIVER, COMPLETE COMPLIANCE CANNOT BE EXPECTED. INTERCHANGE DESIGN FEATURES SHOULD INCORPORATE SUCH ALIGNMENT AS TO MAKE IT UNNECESSARY FOR THE MAJORITY OF MOTORISTS TO TAKE ANY ACTION TO ACCOMPLISH THEIR DESIRES. (3) INTERSECTIONS SHOULD BE DESIGNED SO THAT TURNING MOVEMENTS ARE NOT IN CONFLICT WITH THE BETTER JUDGMENT OR INTUITION OF THE MOTORIST. WHEN CONFLICT ARISES, AS MANY AS 10 PERCENT OF THE MOTORISTS INVOLVED MAY RELY ON THEIR JUDGMENT IN PREFERENCE TO THE SIGNS ERECTED. (4) MEDIAN STRIPS SHOULD BE DESIGNED SO THAT THERE IS NO CHANGE IN ALIGNMENT FOR ONCOMING TRAFFIC. (5) IN SOME CASES THE TOPOGRAPHY IS SUCH THAT LEFT TURNS AT GRADE CAN BE ACCOMPLISHED WITHOUT THE USE OF A STOP SIGN IF SAID TRAFFIC MOVEMENT IS INFREQUENT AND THE TOTAL VOLUME OF THE INTERSECTION LIGHT TO MEDIUM. (6) SIGNS HAVE THEIR GREATEST EFFECTIVENESS WHEN THEY ARE INCORPORATED WITH INTERSECTIONAL DESIGN SUCH THAT TOGETHER THEY PRODUCE LOGICAL SOLUTIONS TO THE DRIVER'S DILEMMA.

• Record URL:
  • https://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/hrbproceedings/36/36-038.pdf
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Vol 36, pp 575-586, 9 FIG, 3 TAB. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
• Authors:
  • Davidson, B M
• Publication Date: 1957

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Monograph Title: Proceedings of the Thirty-Sixth Annual Meeting of the Highway Research Board, Washington, D.C., January 7-11, 1957
• Serial:
  • Highway Research Board Proceedings
  • Volume: 36
  • Publisher: Highway Research Board

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Approach lanes; Automobile drivers; Driver performance; Drivers; Intersections; Personnel performance; Signs; Traffic control; Traffic signs
• Old TRIS Terms: Intersection approach; Traffic sign observance
• Subject Areas: Design; Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00203568
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: May 22 1972 12:00AM