Evaluation of Lateral Clearance Distances Between Vehicles and Bicycles During Overtaking Maneuvers on Rural Roads

The lateral clearance distance between bicycles and overtaking vehicles is becoming a more common research study, but nearly all these studies occur on urban roadways. The objective of this paper was to evaluate lateral clearance distances between vehicles and bicycles during overtaking maneuvers on rural roads. This paper comes out of a larger research effort to identify (and ideally eliminate crashes, and the resulting fatalities and injuries) between bicycles and motorized vehicles on rural roadways. The data collection process for this research effort collected 1151 observations through real-time, in-field sensor and video logging. Prior research by the author (with others) developed the real-time bicycle-mounted field data collection system. The collected data was then used to evaluate lateral clearance distances between vehicles and bicycles either when a bicycle lane was, or was not, present. The evaluation shows, first, that drivers, regardless of the presence of a bicycle lane, provide more than double the minimum clearance required by law. Second, however, is that distinct patterns in driver behavior can be observed as a result of the presence of a bicycle lane. The lateral clearance distances are more concentrated within a 2.50 foot range (from 4.50 to 7.00 feet), indicating that drivers are likely maintaining their position within their lane. When a bike lane is not present, the distribution is more widely skewed. Based on the results of this study, a bike lane on a rural road appears to reduce the likelihood of a vehicle encroaching into oncoming traffic (crossing a solid centerline) by over 50%, and constrains the likely range in which a driver alters the forward path of their vehicle, thereby preventing a driver from appearing (to oncoming traffic) to be moving toward/or across a centerline. These benefits also appear to be non-vehicle-type specific.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • This paper was sponsored by TRB committee ANF20 Standing Committee on Bicycle Transportation.
• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Authors:
  • Chapman, Jeremy R
• Conference:
  • Transportation Research Board 95th Annual Meeting
  • Location: Washington DC, United States
  • Date: 2016-1-10 to 2016-1-14
• Date: 2016

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; Maps; Photos; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 19p
• Monograph Title: TRB 95th Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bicycle lanes; Bicycles; Center lines; Clearances (Navigation); Motor vehicles; Passing; Rural highways; Traffic violations
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Safety and Human Factors; I82: Accidents and Transport Infrastructure;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01588973
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 16-0013
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Jan 30 2016 6:06PM