The issue of truck accidents on urban freeways is a vital concern for both traffic managers and the general public. The passage of the Surface Transportation Assistance Act of 1982 and recently the North American Free Trade Agreement has increased the numbers of large combination vehicles on the highway system. The rise in truck volume (defined as vehicles exceeding 4.5 Mg (10,000 lbs), the int...

The main topic of this thesis is how to realistically model driver behavior in computer simulations of safety critical traffic events, an increasingly important tool for evaluating automotive active safety systems. By means of a comprehensive literature review, it was found that current driver models are generally poorly validated on relevant near-crash behavior data. Furthermore, competing mod...

Collisions between trucks and vulnerable road users (VRUs) represent one of the most severe types collisions. Research initiatives to mitigate truck–VRU collisions include vehicle redesign, infrastructure improvements, driver warning systems. Truck training is a complementary solution that can lead improved driving behavior collision reduction. We aimed understand perceptions subject matter exp...

Automated trucks for long-distance journeys seem within reach. With such automation, no human driver could be available. However, the last mile of delivery is likely to involve humans. Therefore, either a should still present, or construction site workers must interact with automated truck. While capable dealing various sites feasible, development costly and time-consuming. To define cooperativ...

Rumble strips aim to alert the driver of dangerous situations via acoustic and tactile stimulation. They can, however, also lead increased noise in surroundings. Strip parameters vehicle type determines size these vibratory effects. In our work, 16 rumble strip types (including with irregular spacing) were evaluated respect their effects on acoustics, vibration, perception. Interior exterior em...

INTRODUCTION This exploratory study investigated the relationship between vision obstructions from body pillars and lane-change crashes. METHODS The vision obstructions were quantified by measuring, from the driver's perspective, the horizontal angular sizes and locations of the driver-side A-, B-, and C-pillars. The sample consisted of 21 vehicle models, including 13 passenger cars, 6 SUVs, ...

A peer-education HIV/AIDS prevention programme for bar-based sex workers and their potential clients (long-distance truck drivers) in Malawi was evaluated for impact. A mixed method approach was used, the tools being structured questionnaires and focus group discussions. The results showed that in the active districts, the presence of sex worker peer educators led to a increase in condom use wi...

Long-combination vehicles (LCVs) have significant potential to increase economic productivity for shippers and carriers by decreasing the number of truck trips, thus reducing costs. However, size and weight regulations, triggered by safety concerns and, in some cases, infrastructure investment concerns, have prevented large-scale adoption of such vehicles. Information on actual crash performanc...