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Best Practices for Road Weather Management Version 2.0

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Title:

Effects of Wheather-Controlled Variable Message Signing on Driver Behaviour

Abstract:

The purpose of the study was to investigate the effects of local and frequently updated information of adverse weather and road conditions on driver behavior. The information was transmitted by several DMS types including slippery road condition signs, minimum headway signs. The slippery road condition sign and minimum headway sign decreased the mean speed of cars traveling in free-flow traffic by one to two km/h. Drivers' reports suggested that the DMS have other effects on driver behavior, such as the refocusing of attention to seek cues on potential hazards, testing the slipperiness of the road, and more careful passing behavior. Lowering the speed limit from 100 km/h to 80 km/h on a weather-controlled road decreased the mean speed by an average of 3.4 km/h in winter. The system proved most effective when adverse weather and road conditions were not easy to detect. The system also decreased the standard deviation of speed.

Source(s):

Nordic Road and Transport Research (Finland), Nov. 2002 issue

http://www.vtt.fi/inf/pdf/publications/2001/P447.pdf

Date: 2002

Author:

Technical Research Centre Of Finland

Keywords:


Pavement condition
Driver behavior
Dynamic Message Sign (DMS)
Variable Speed Limit (VSL)
Traveler information

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