Driving a motor vehicle is a complex activity, and errors in performing the driving task can result in crashes which cause property damage, injuries, and sometimes death. It is important that the road environment supports drivers in safe performance of the driving task. At present, increasing amounts of visual information from sources such as roadside advertising create visual clutter in the road environment. There has been little research on the effect of this visual clutter on driving performance, particularly for vulnerable groups such as novice and older drivers. The present work aims to fill this gap. Literature from a variety of relevant disciplines was surveyed and integrated, and a model of the mechanisms by which visual clutter could affect performance of the driving task was developed. To determine potential sources of clutter, focus groups with drivers were held and two studies involving subjective ratings of visual clutter in photographs and video clips of road environments were carried out. This resulted in a taxonomy of visual clutter in the road environment: ‘situational clutter’, including vehicles and other road users with whom drivers interact; ‘designed clutter’, including road signs, signals, and markings used by traffic authorities to communicate with users; and ‘built clutter’, including roadside development and any signage not originating from a road authority. The taxonomy of visual clutter was tested using the change detection paradigm. Drivers were slower to detect changes in photographs of road scenes with high levels of visual clutter than with low levels, and slower for road scenes including advertising billboards than road scenes without billboards. Finally, the effects of billboard presence and lead vehicles on vehicle control, eye movements and responses to traffic signs and signals were tested using a driving simulator. The number of vehicles included appeared to be insufficient to create situational clutter. However billboards had significant effects on driver speed (slower), ability to follow directions on road signs (slower with more errors), and eye movements (increased amount of time fixating on roadsides at the expense of scanning the road ahead). Older drivers were particularly affected by visual clutter in both the change detection and simulated driving tasks. Results are discussed in terms of implications for future research and for road safety practitioners. Visual clutter can affect driver workload as well as purely visual aspects of the driving task (such as hazard perception and search for road signs). When driver workload is increased past a certain point other driving tasks will also be performed less well (such as speed maintenance). Advertising billboards in particular cause visual distraction, and should be considered at a similar level of potential danger as visual distraction from in-vehicle devices. The consequences of roadside visual clutter are more severe for the growing demographic of older drivers. Currently, road environments do not support drivers (particularly older drivers) as well as they could. Based on the results, guidance is given for road authorities to improve this status when designing and location road signage and approving roadside advertising.

Traffic signs, which are extremely important for traffic safety, aims to regulate traffic by providing information about the characteristics of road and road environment for drivers. The success of traffic signs mainly rely on the easy comprehensibility of its meaning in a short time. Further more, today&rsquo / s global economies and transportation systems emphasize the need for more universial traffic signs which was the main motivation of two main treaties on traffic signs / Vienna Convetion in 1968 and European Aggreement Treaty in 1971, which are signed and followed by Turkey. For an effort to increase traffic safety, a Subcommittee of the Turkish Highway Traffic Safety (THTS) Council requested the determination of comprehensibility of critical signs with higher probability of impact on traffic safety selected by a group of experts from engineers and law enforcement agencies in a survey study. The survey questionnaire included 30 selected traffic signs (including two prohibition signs omitting oblique bar recently changed as a part of the European Union Participation Process) and 9 control group signs, a total of 39 traffic signs, and driver characteristic questions, such as gender, age, educational background, etc. to reveal insights about a) the level of comprehensibility of different groups of traffic signs and and b) driver characteristics that may affect the comprehensibility of these signs. A pilot study in the city of Ankara is conducted over a sample of 1,478 surveys. Answers for the meaning of each sign are coded using a scale of five (opposite, wrong, no comment, partially correct and correct responses). The results showed that the control group signs have very high comprehensibility as expected, while some of the critical signs were not known much, or mistaken for others, even mistaken for opposite meanings. The certain loss of comprehensibility of the traffic signs changed recently is seen in the comparative analysis of the signs before and after the change, as well as significant shift towards an opposite meaning. The significance of driver characteristics (gender, education, occupation etc.) affecting the comprehensibility of the traffic signs varies among traffic signs and characteristics. As the result of this study, (THTS) Council decided to support traffic and driver education more and mass promotion of mis- or un-comprehended signs without searching for more local solutions or versions.

Orientadores: Siome Klein Goldenstein, Jacques Wainer / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Computação / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-22T23:53:33Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Coelho_RenatoSchattanPereira_M.pdf: 864445 bytes, checksum: 8f57902047a23925af4b81fa0d7f3188 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013 / Resumo: O trânsito é um problema cada vez maior nas cidades, consumindo recursos e agravando a poluição; em São Paulo perdem-se cerca de R$33 bilhões por ano por causa do trânsito. Neste trabalho de mestrado desenvolvemos um sistema que une as áreas de simulação de multidões e planejamento probabilístico para otimizar semáforos de tempo fixo. Essas duas áreas apresentam algoritmos que permitem soluções eficientes para os problemas, mas a sua aplicação ainda depende largamente da intervenção de especialistas no problema a ser estudado, seja descrevendo o problema de planejamento probabilístico, seja interpretando os dados devolvidos pelo simulador. Nosso sistema diminui essa dependência ao utilizar autômatos celulares para simular o tráfego e gerar informações que são então utilizadas para descrever o problema de planejamento probabilístico. Com isso podemos: (i) reduzir a necessidade de coleta de dados, que passam a ser gerados pelo simulador e (ii) produzir bons planos para o controle de semáforos de tempo fixo sem que seja necessária a intervenção de especialistas para a análise dos dados. Nos dois testes realizados a solução proposta pelo sistema diminuiu o tempo médio de percurso em 18:51% e 13:51%, respectivamente / Abstract: Traffic is an ever increasing problem, draining resources and aggravating pollution. In Sao Paulo, for instance, financial losses caused by traffic represent a sum of about R$33 billions a year. In this work we've developed a system that puts together the areas of Crowd Simulation and Probabilistic Planning to optimize fixed time traffic lights. Although both areas present good algorithms their use is limited by their reliance on specialists, whether to describe the probabilistic planning problem or to analyze the data produced by the simulations. Our approach contributes to minimize this dependence by using cellular automata simulations to generate the data that is used to describe the probabilistic planning problem. This allows us to: (i) reduce the amount of data collection, since the data is now generated by the simulator and (ii) produce good policies for fixed time traffic light control without the intervention of specialists to analyze the data. In the two tests performed the solution proposed by the system was able to reduce travel times by 18:51% and 13:51%, respectively / Mestrado / Ciência da Computação / Mestre em Ciência da Computação

The aim of this thesis is to verify the accuracy of the location of the vertical road signs at selected intersections and to consider colorimetric and retroreflective properties of some of them. If some brands fail, it is necessary to propose solutions. At the end of this work there is a summary of how many brands fail and subsequent percentaual quantification.

This master‘s thesis describes the design and implementation of the system for detection and recognition of speed limit road signs. It focuses on the recognition of the red circular speed limit sign from the image data using the computer vision methods. Several methods were programmed and tested as a part of this thesis. In the final solution, the segmentation based on YCbCr color model is used. Detection of the circular sign and final classification is performed by template matching method. Algorithm for the tracking of the detected signs between frames of the video is used for better performance in real-time recognition. Application is developed using MATLAB and Simulink. The result is a simple driver assistance system prototype, which can be implemented in any computer with camera. The correct function of the algorithm was confirmed during a testing in a traffic.

Cette recherche explore les différentes stratégies mises en place afin de minimiser les impacts négatifs encourus à la suite de la mise en service d'une voie de contournement pour les petites municipalités du Québec. Les stratégies identifiées ont été relevées dans la littérature, dans la documentation municipale ainsi que dans des études de cas, soit par des relevés terrains et des entretiens sur le territoire de quatre (4) municipalités. Les stratégies de planification mises sur pied visent essentiellement la configuration des entrées de villes, la signalisation ainsi que les programmes de revitalisation des noyaux urbains. Il ressort de l'analyse que la bonne acceptation sociale des voies de contournement est liée à la présence de concertation entre les différentes parties prenantes d'un projet tout au long de celui-ci. De plus, le temps écoulé entre les premiers balbutiements du projet et la mise en service d'une voie de contournement doit être d'une durée acceptable afin que des stratégies planifiées concordent avec le contexte économique et culturel dans lequel s'insèrera le projet. La recherche dresse ainsi le portrait des stratégies planifiées pour les municipalités situées le long de la route nationale 117 et ayant des voies de contournement. Plus spécifiquement, l'étude de cas porte sur les municipalités de Mont-Tremblant (secteur de Saint-Jovite), La Conception, Labelle et Rivière-Rouge dans la région des Laurentides. / This research explores the different strategies currently put into place to minimize the negative effects of the implementation of bypass routes on the small cities of the province of Québec. An assessment of the different strategies used was done by reviewing literature and municipal documentation, as well as reviewing case studies by analysing field reports and maintenance reports of four (4) municipalities. The planning strategies elaborated are essentially aimed at the configuration of city entrance lanes, the utilisation of road signs and the programs of revitalisation of urban areas. The main element that can be observed is that in order to have a good social acceptation of bypass routes, there has to be a good dialogue between the different parties involved, and that for the entire duration of the road works. Also, in order for the strategies to concord with the economic and cultural realities of the municipalities, the amount of time elapsed between the beginning of the project and the actual implementation of the relief route has to be reasonable. This research overlooks the strategies planned for municipalities that are located in the Laurentides region alongside national road 117 and that are accessible via a bypass route. More specifically, this case study focuses on the cities of Mont-Tremblant (Saint-Jovite aera) , La Conception, Labelle and Rivière-Rouge.

Cette recherche explore les différentes stratégies mises en place afin de minimiser les impacts négatifs encourus à la suite de la mise en service d'une voie de contournement pour les petites municipalités du Québec. Les stratégies identifiées ont été relevées dans la littérature, dans la documentation municipale ainsi que dans des études de cas, soit par des relevés terrains et des entretiens sur le territoire de quatre (4) municipalités. Les stratégies de planification mises sur pied visent essentiellement la configuration des entrées de villes, la signalisation ainsi que les programmes de revitalisation des noyaux urbains. Il ressort de l'analyse que la bonne acceptation sociale des voies de contournement est liée à la présence de concertation entre les différentes parties prenantes d'un projet tout au long de celui-ci. De plus, le temps écoulé entre les premiers balbutiements du projet et la mise en service d'une voie de contournement doit être d'une durée acceptable afin que des stratégies planifiées concordent avec le contexte économique et culturel dans lequel s'insèrera le projet. La recherche dresse ainsi le portrait des stratégies planifiées pour les municipalités situées le long de la route nationale 117 et ayant des voies de contournement. Plus spécifiquement, l'étude de cas porte sur les municipalités de Mont-Tremblant (secteur de Saint-Jovite), La Conception, Labelle et Rivière-Rouge dans la région des Laurentides. / This research explores the different strategies currently put into place to minimize the negative effects of the implementation of bypass routes on the small cities of the province of Québec. An assessment of the different strategies used was done by reviewing literature and municipal documentation, as well as reviewing case studies by analysing field reports and maintenance reports of four (4) municipalities. The planning strategies elaborated are essentially aimed at the configuration of city entrance lanes, the utilisation of road signs and the programs of revitalisation of urban areas. The main element that can be observed is that in order to have a good social acceptation of bypass routes, there has to be a good dialogue between the different parties involved, and that for the entire duration of the road works. Also, in order for the strategies to concord with the economic and cultural realities of the municipalities, the amount of time elapsed between the beginning of the project and the actual implementation of the relief route has to be reasonable. This research overlooks the strategies planned for municipalities that are located in the Laurentides region alongside national road 117 and that are accessible via a bypass route. More specifically, this case study focuses on the cities of Mont-Tremblant (Saint-Jovite aera) , La Conception, Labelle and Rivière-Rouge.

Dissertation describes new methodology of design turbo-roundabouts in Czech Republic. Especially innovative is approach to the design of traffic lanes with regards to standard vehicles and widening of traffic lanes according to their dimensions. Innovative is also approach to road signs, where details of current signs are modified, however, these details are important for drivers’ better understanding while driving through turbo-roundabouts. Dissertation fills legislative, but also technical, blank spot during turbo-roundabouts design and I believe that it will benefit particularly designers of these intersections.