An Analysis of Elderly Drivers' Behavior around Accident-Prone Toll Plaza on Expressway

Although rapid aging of popularity causes serious traffic problem in Japan, only few studies have been conducted to investigate elderly drivers’ behavior especially on expressway. The authors' statistical analysis of accident records on expressway in past five years showed that (1) toll 2 barriers (TBs) are highly accident-prone (2) a typical pattern of elderlies’ accidents is significantly different to that of non-elderlies’ on TBs; while characteristic pattern of elderlies’ accidents is “side-by-side collision cause d by drivers’ lack of scanning for checking safety of backside”, that of non-elderlies’ is “rear-end-collision caused by eye glance behavior while driving at TB gate”. However, whereas accident records analysis gives approximate information about elderlies’ accidents, it gives no detailed information about traffic environment or drivers’ behavior. Therefore, in this study, to know detailed information about traffic environment on TBs, the authors analyzed 845 vehicle trajectories on an accident-prone TB using video-based approach and detected potentially dangerous spots where traffic conflicts frequently occur. Then, to know how elderly drivers behave at the detected spots, the authors performed an experiment in real traffic conditions using 40 subjects (26 elder lies and 14 non-elderlies). In the authors' study, they let each subject drive the expressway including the TB and measured his driving behavior using multiple sensors (eye camera, video camera, etc.). After finished driving, to know how each subject perceived risk while driving, the authors interviewed each subject by showing videos of his own driving behavior recorded in the experiment. As a behavioral approach, the authors evaluated and scored each subject’s safe driving skill for preventing accidents based on driving instructors’ knowledge using measured sensor data. The result of driving behavior evaluation was that elderlies’ safe driving skill score at the potentially dangerous spots on the TB is significantly lower than that of non-elderlies’. In addition, to know why elderlies ’ behave riskily on the TB, the authors analyzed subjects’ interview data and evaluate each subject’s risk perception ability (psychological approach) . The evaluation result of risk perception ability shows that even at the potentially dangerous spots on the TB where traffic conflicts frequently occur, elderlies’ could not perceive risk appropriately .

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://www.its-jp.org/english/congress_e/
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Abstract used with permission of ITS Japan. Paper No. 3190.
• Corporate Authors:

  ITS Japan

  Tokyo,   Japan 
• Authors:
  • Sakamoto, Hiroaki
  • Tada, Masahiro
  • Iida, Katsuhiro
  • Noma, Haruo
  • Yamada, Norihiro
  • Kume, Fumio
  • An, Sihyoung
  • Renge, Kazumi
• Conference:
  • 20th ITS World Congress
  • Location: Tokyo , Japan
  • Date: 2013-10-14 to 2013-10-18
• Publication Date: 2013

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 10p
• Monograph Title: 20th ITS World Congress, Tokyo 2013. Proceedings

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Aged drivers; Barriers (Roads); Behavior; Evaluation; Expressways; High risk locations; Perception; Risk; Toll plazas; Traffic conflicts
• Geographic Terms: Japan
• Subject Areas: Highways; Planning and Forecasting; Safety and Human Factors; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning; I83: Accidents and the Human Factor;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01535326
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 9784990493981
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Aug 27 2014 10:47AM