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Planning of self-explaining roads. Preliminary study on the SER-principle and applications in Europe

Kayttajaa ohjaavien teiden suunnittelu. Esiselvitys self-explaining road-periaatteesta ja sovellutuksista Euroopassa

Self-explaining road (SER) is a road which is designed and implemented so that a road user instinctively realizes what kind of behaviour is expected in traffic. Then, the road and traffic environment as well as road users' expectations of encountered traffic situations coincide and the risk of mistakes is minimized. Above all, the goal is to promote traffic safety. The SER -philosophy has been justified in behavioural science and already strongly guides planning in the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark. However, its practical impacts on traffic safety are yet to be verified. The SER -philosophy is based on wider traffic safety paradigm, according to which transport system should be planned on the terms of human capability. This thought is the driving argument in the most recent road planning principles, such as the Zero Vision in Sweden and the Sustainable Safety vision in the Netherlands, which is specifically linked to the implementation of the SER - principle. The application of the SER -philosophy requires that there exist groups of homogeneous roads in which consistency in driving behaviour is expected. Thus, this behaviour cannot be applied to single roads without an overall perspective of the network, and it is based on the categorization of the road network into functional classes. In order to support safe driving behaviour and appropriate choice of speed level, drivers should be enabled to recognise the type of road they are using. This presumes that the functional task of the road, desired speed level and planning elements are in balance with each other and that road characteristics are homogeneous enough within one road category and different enough between categories. In the Netherlands the essential road characteristics supporting the SER - principle at least include road markings in the longitudinal direction, directional separation, presence of roadside functions (parking, bicycle lanes, pavements etc.) and specific intersection types within a road category. In addition to structural solutions, use of roads should be consistent which means consistency in, for example, linking the road to land use, separation of transport modes and driving directions as well as in permitted modes of transport. In Finland it would also be necessary to clarify the consistency between the existing functional classification of highways and road conditions and the actual use of roads. Moreover, it should also be studied, which functional classification, that supports the SER -principle, would be the most suitable in the Finnish circumstances. Similarly, the approach in behavioural science to the SER -philosophy should be evaluated in more detail by experts of traffic psychology and safety. It should also be studied which features of the road, road environment and traffic are the most essential regarding the SER -principle and which solutions can best be applied and implemented in the Finnish circumstances. Specific emphasis can be put on defining the important features at least in the planning of trunk roads, specifying junction policy for different road categories and identifying easily implemented, widely adoptable measures, such as road markings. This report may be found at http://alk.tiehallinto.fi/julkaisut/pdf2/3201049-vkayttaj_ohj_teiden_suunn.pdf

Language

  • Finnish

Media Info

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Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 01094831
  • Record Type: Publication
  • Source Agency: TRL
  • ISBN: 978-951-803-870-5
  • Files: ITRD
  • Created Date: Apr 25 2008 8:01AM