Diagnostic and Warning Tools for Loss of Control on Curves

The aim of the SARI project is to better inform drivers about losses of control on the open road, which is where two thirds of fatal accidents occur in France. One of the assumptions is that drivers perceive road difficulties poorly and are then surprised or react inappropriately. The objective is to correlate levels of risk of loss of control in bends with road characteristics and give drivers circumstantial warnings to urge them from a normal level of attention to a more alert level. Two steps are necessary to achieve this aim: develop diagnostic methods to identify the most dangerous bends; adapt the signing or devise new warning systems that catch drivers' attention and prompt them to slow down. For the diagnostic part, the Alertinfra method used in France is presented; it triggers alerts based on the geometrical characteristics of a bend. The new diagnostic method proposed uses a test vehicle to determine the maximum permissible speed through a bend. For the signing and warning part, the method applied in France since 2002 differentiates signing according to the difference between the theoretical speed of approach and in the bend. The warning method derived from the SARI project is a dynamic warning system that is triggered only when the speed or the transverse position of the vehicle approaching the bend does not comply with the established limits. With these methods, it will soon be possible to justify a speed limit by a true level of risk to drivers.

• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Authors:
  • Gallenne, Marie-Line
  • Lechner, Daniel
  • Violette, Eric
  • Fogli, Michel
• Conference:
  • Transportation Research Board 88th Annual Meeting
  • Location: Washington DC, United States
  • Date: 2009-1-11 to 2009-1-15
• Date: 2009

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: DVD
• Features: Figures; Photos; References;
• Pagination: 18p
• Monograph Title: TRB 88th Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers DVD

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Fatalities; Highway curves; Loss of control; Risk assessment; Safety; Traffic crashes; Warning systems
• Uncontrolled Terms: Diagnostics
• Geographic Terms: France
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors; I83: Accidents and the Human Factor;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01123060
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 09-2470
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Mar 13 2009 6:36AM