HUMAN FACTORS IN HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY RESEARCH. CHAPTER 5 VISIBILITY AND LEGIBILITY OF HIGHWAY SIGNS

In this chapter, the factors affecting legibility are reviewed, and various studies aimed at determining the legibility distances of highway signs are outlined. These studies take into account driver vision, use of lower-case letters, the effect of familiarity, the effect of brightness, the need for contrast, relations between letter height, width and letter spacing where the size of the sign is limited, glance legibility, and calculation of necessary letter sizes. In addition, studies concerning visibility factors in sign effectiveness are reviewed. These studies have taken into account attention value or conspicuity factors, mounting position, sign color, brightness ratio and brightness level, and importance of backgrounds.

• Corporate Authors:

  John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated

  111 River Street
  Hoboken, NJ  United States  07030-6000
• Authors:
  • Forbes, T W
• Publication Date: 1972

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: p. 95-109
• Serial:
  • Publication of: Central Building Research Institute, India
  • Publisher: Central Building Research Institute, India

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Brightness; Drivers; Legibility; Lettering; Traffic signs; Visibility; Vision
• Old TRIS Terms: Backgrounds; Driver vision; Letters
• ITRD Terms: 9011: Design (overall design); 540: Legibility; 8588: State of the art report; 8526: Textbook; 553: Traffic sign; 6783: Visibility
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00262705
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Transport and Road Research Laboratory (TRRL)
• Files: ITRD, TRIS
• Created Date: Jan 9 1975 12:00AM