Accident; analysis and prevention
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Overtaking cyclists is challenging for drivers because it requires a well-timed, safe interaction between the driver, the cyclist, and the oncoming traffic. Previous research has investigated this manoeuvre in different experimental environments, including naturalistic driving, naturalistic cycling, and simulator studies. These studies highlight the significance of oncoming traffic-but did not extensively examine the influence of the cyclist's position within the lane. ⋯ The results showed that, both when the cyclist rode closer to the centre of the lane and when the time gap to the oncoming vehicle was shorter, safety margins for all potential collisions decreased. Under these conditions, drivers-particularly female drivers-preferred accelerative over flying manoeuvres. Bayesian statistics modelled these results to inform the development of active safety systems that can support drivers in safely overtaking cyclists.
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Traffic accidents are becoming a significant cause for unnatural deaths around the world, with more than 1.25 million fatalities in road accidents each year, and over 20 million people severely injured. A large portion of accidents that result in fatalities involve interaction between vehicles and pedestrians. In the literature, researchers speculate on a wide range of reasons for these figures. ⋯ A series of experiments conclude the paper and support the claim that this phenomenon is frequent among crossing pedestrians. The experimental results suggest that in some common scenarios, more cautious pedestrians may lower the initial risk for an accident at the expense of a total higher risk for an accident during the entire road crossing process, compared with a pedestrian who takes an initial higher level of risk that results in, overall, a decreased probability for an accident. A statistical analysis implies that there are significant differences in this occurrence between adults and children.