Road User-Automated Vehicle Expectancies, Interactions, and Safety

Principal Investigator(s):

David Noyce, Arthur F. Hawnn Professor – University of Wisconsin-Madison
Executive Associate Dean of the College of Engineering – University of Wisconsin-Madison
Executive Director – Traffic Operations and Safety (TOPS) Laboratory
Executive Director – Wisconsin Driving Simulator Laboratory
Associate Director – Safety Research Using Simulation (SaferSIM) Center
Sikai Chen, Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering – University of Wisconsin-Madison
Sue Ahn, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering – University of Wisconsin-Madison
Madhav Chitturi, Scientist in Civil and Environmental Engineering – University of Wisconsin-Madison

Project Abstract:
Automated vehicles (AVs) have the potential to enable a safe, efficient, equitable, healthy, and sustainable transportation system and communities. However, broad public adoption of AVs is predicated on the AVs’ ability to engage in safe and efficient interactions with other road users: conventional human-driven vehicles (HVs), pedestrians, and bicyclists, in our current infrastructure and traffic systems. Human road users have certain expectancies for how other road users behave and interact accordingly. While humans can anticipate and handle a range of other road users’ behaviors, unexpected behaviors that fall outside or in tail end of the range, i.e., expectancy violations (EVs), can incite improper responses that could have ramifications for traffic safety and operations. Obviously, significant challenges for AV technology remain in coexisting in harmony with human road users, beyond its own proper functionality. The objective of this research is to do the foundational research to prepare to study interactions between human-driven vehicles, pedestrians, and automated vehicles to elucidate potential expectancy violations and consequent impact on safety. Eventually, in a later phase of the project, systematic human-in-the-loop (HIL) experiments simulating AV-HV-Pedestrian and AV-HV interactions will be conducted to probe expectancies, expectancy violations, and safety impacts.

Institution(s): University of Wisconsin-Madison

Award Year: 2024

Research Focus: Safety

Project Form(s):