Characteristics and risk of violation behavior of non-motorists at signalized intersections

Aiming at prevalent violations of non-motorists at urban intersections in China, this paper intends to clarify the characteristics and risks of non-motorist violations at signalized intersections through questionnaires and video recordings, which may serve as a basis for non-motorized vehicle management. It can help improve the traffic order and enhance the degree of safety at signalized intersections. To obtain the perception information, a questionaire survey on the Internet was conducted and 972 valid questionnaires were returned. It is found that academic degree contributes little to non-motorist violations, while electrical bicyclists have a relatively higher frequency of violations compared with bicyclists. The video data of 18 228 non-motorist behaviors indicate that the violation rate of all non-motorists is 26.5%; the number of conflicts reaches 1 938, among which violation conflicts account for 66.8%. The study shows that the violation rates and the violation behavior at three types of surveyed intersections are markedly different. It is also concluded that the conflict rates and the violation rates are positively correlated. Furthermore, signal violation, traveling in the wrong direction, and overspeeding to cross the intersection are the most dangerous among traffic violation behaviors.

Method for pedestrian signal timing at signalized intersections

The pedestrian timing at signalized intersections is studied aiming at the problems of the inconsistency of the vehicular and pedestrian timing requirements and the insufficiency of pedestrian clearance. Based on the formulae of WALK and flashing DON＇T WALK （FDW） in the highway capacity manual （HCM）, the relationship between pedestrian signal indications and vehicular signal indications is discussed using the theory of traffic flow. Then, methods of pedestrian timing for different cases are established, particularly the methods of the pedestrian green adjustment. Ways of pedestrian crossing are analyzed for roadways with different forms and widths of the median island. The sampling values of calculation parameters are studied, and the recommended formulae of pedestrian timing for different conditions are presented.

Analytical method of minimum spacing of signalized intersections on bidirectional two-lane highways

In order to improve the smoothness of traffic flow on bidirectional two-lane highways, an analytical method is proposed to optimize the minimum spacing of the signalized intersections. The minimum signal spacing is determined by two parts, including the necessary distance for stabilizing the traffic flow after it passes through the signalized intersections and the length of the upstream functional area of intersection. For the former, based on the platoon dispersion theory, the stable distance determination problem of traffic flow is studied and a model of dispersion degrees varying with the distance from the upstream intersection is presented, in which the time headway is intended to yield the shifted negative exponential distribution. The parameters of the model for medal and collector highways are estimated respectively based on the field data. Then, the section at which the slope of dispersion degree curve equals -0.1 is regarded as the beginning of the dispersion stable state. The length of the intersection upstream functional area is determined by three parts, including the distance traveled during perception-reaction time, the distance traveled while a driver decelerates to a stop, and the queue storage length. Based on the above procedures, the minimum signal spacing of each highway category is proposed.

Examining the Risk Factors of Rear-End Crashes at Signalized Intersections

Rear-end crashes are among the most common crash types at signalized intersections. To examine the risk factors for the occurrence of this crash type, this study involved the analysis of nine years of intersection crash records in the state of Wyoming. With that, the contributing factors related to crash, driver, environmental, and roadway characteristics, including pavement surface friction, were investigated. A binomial logistic regression modeling approach was applied to achieve the study’s objective. The results showed that three factors related to crash and driver’s attributes (commercial vehicle involvement, speeding, and driver’s age) and four factors related to environmental and roadway characteristics (lighting, weather conditions, area type, whether urban or rural and pavement friction) are associated with the risk of rear-end crash occurrence at signalized intersections. This study provides insights into the mitigation measures to implement concerning rear-end crashes at signalized intersections.

Effects of behavioral characteristics of taxi drivers on safety and capacity of signalized intersections

Comparative analyses were conducted to compare the effects of the behavioral characteristics of the drivers of taxis and private cars on the capacity and safety of signalized intersections. Data were collected at sixteen signalized intersections in the Nanjing area in China. The risk-taking behaviors of the drivers of taxis and private cars were compared. The results suggest that 19.9% of taxi drivers have committed at least one of the identified risky behaviors, which is 2.37 times as high as that of the drivers of private cars(8.4%). The traffic conflicts technique was used to estimate the safety effects of taxis and private cars. The overall conflict rate for taxis is 21.4% higher than that for private cars, implying that taxis are more likely to be involved in conflicts. Almost all of the identified traffic conflicts can be attributed to certain levels of risk-taking behaviors committed by either taxi drivers or the drivers of private cars, and taxi drivers are more likely to be at fault in a conflict. Failure to yield to right-of-way and improper lane change is the leading causes of the conflicts in which taxis are at-fault. The research team further studied the effects of taxis on the queue discharge characteristics at signalized intersections. The results show that the presence of taxis significantly reduces both start-up lost time and saturation headways. The effects of taxis on saturation flow rates are dependent on the proportion of taxis in the discharge flow, and the saturation flow rates increase with the increase in the proportion of taxis. The adjustment factors for various proportions of taxis for different turning movements are then calculated to quantitatively evaluate the effects of taxis on the capacity of signalized intersections.

Optimal allocation model of signalized intersections with dynamic use of exit lanes for left turn

In order to improve the operational efficiency of heavy left-turn demand intersections,an optimal allocation model of an intersection with dynamic use of exit lanes for left turns(EFL)is proposed.The constraints of setting EFL are analyzed,including the number and length of reverse variable lanes,flow direction constraints,and signal constraints,etc.The constraints and control variables are combined in a unified framework for simultaneous optimization.The objective functions are defined as the average delay and left-turn capacity of an intersection.The model is solved by a non-dominated genetic algorithm(NSGA-Ⅱ).The results show that after the optimal allocation of EFL,the average vehicle delays of the intersection can be reduced by 14.9%and left-turn capacity can be increased by 19.3%.The effectiveness of the optimal allocation model of EFL is demonstrated.

Incorporating nonuniform arrivals in delay variability modeling at signalized intersections

The delay vehicles experience at signalized intersections is one of the most important indicators for measuring intersection performance. The interpretation of delay variability evolvement at intersections gives a comprehensive insight into arterial traffic operation. Thus, an analytical model is proposed to investigate delay variability at coordinated intersections. Two different flow rates are assumed for both effective red and green periods in cumulative curves, through which the effect of signal coordination is incorporated in delay estimation. Then, an analogy of Markov chain process is used to explore the mechanism of stochastic overflow queue at signalized intersections. Numerical case studies show that with the decrease of arrival proportions during green, the shape of delay distribution in both undersaturation and oversaturation cases shifts faster towards higher values, implying that the coordination effect between paired intersections has a great effect on the delay distribution. As for delay fluctuation range, favorable coordination is demonstrated to be able to weaken the variability of delay estimates especially for undersaturation conditions.

Estimation of Probability of Swarming Pedestrians' Violation at Signalized Intersections in Developing Cities

We made an on-site investigation about pedestrian violation of traffic signals at a signalized intersection in Xi＇an, Shaanxi province, China. Based on it, we studied the impact of pedestrian＇s waiting time on violation decision and the impact of the number of pedestrians in colony on the probability of swarming pedestrians＇ violation. The result revealed that the probability of pedestrian violation rose with the waiting time for the pedestrians＇ green signal. Then we developed a Monte Carlo model for simulating mixed vehicles and pedestrians and used the on-site investigation data to validate the model. When traffic volume is fight, the error between the simulated values and the measured ones is 2.67%. When traffic volume is heavy, the error is 3.38%.

Examination of Signalized Intersections According to Australian and HCM （Highway Capacity Manual） Methods Using Sidra Intersection Software

Signalized intersections are widely used in today＇s cities where the traffic flows from various directions and the pedestrians have right to pass one by one. In this study, two of the intersections in Konya were investigated, Kule and Nalgacl-Sille signalized intersections. The intersections are important in terms of urban traffic. New cycle times were proposed with the aim to minimize delays and to increase the capacities and level of services in these intersections. The intersections were examined using Sidra Intersection 5.1 software based on the Australian methods. Also, signalization calculations can be made according to the American HCM （Highway Capacity Manual） methods by using the same software. The intersection analyses were performed using both methods based on the current cycle times and optimum cycle times proposed by the methods. The obtained analytical results were compared and some solutions were suggested. After analysis, the obtained values using the Australian and American methods were observed to be close. Additionally, the decrease in the delays and the increase in the capacities at the intersections were generally observed as a result of the proposed cycle times.

Temporal and spatial compliance behaviour of pedestrians under the influence of time pressure at signalized intersections:A pedestrian simulator study

Pedestrian safety is at high stakes due to the non-compliance practices of pedestrians at signalized intersections.Additionally,when pedestrians are hurrying,they deliberately engage in such unsafe behaviour.Therefore,the purpose of this study was to understand how time pressure(i.e.,feeling of hurry or saving time)affected pedestrians'decisions to follow traffic rules at signalized junctions.To achieve the study objectives,a pedestrian simulator setup was used to collect the crossing behaviour of forty participants at a four-legged signalized intersection.Non-compliance,one of the riskiest pedestrian behaviours,was examined with respect to three different forms,comprising dangerous temporal non-compliance(D-TNC),non-dangerous temporal non-compliance(ND-TNC),and spatial non-compliance(SNC)behaviour under two distinct conditions:baseline(i.e.,no time pressure)and time pressure conditions.The effects of demographics,usual walking features,and time pressure on D-TNC and ND-TNC were investigated using a multinomial regression model,while SNC behaviour was investigated using a binary regression model.It was interesting to note that the majority of the factors related to pedestrians’usual walking behaviour had an impact on all kinds of non-compliance behaviours.Importantly,the results also showcased that time pressure had a contrasting impact on D-TNC and ND-TNC behaviour whereas SNC behaviour increased under time pressure.Additionally,the varying impacts of D-TNC,ND-TNC,and SNC were also reflected in the occurrence of the crashes,which were probably triggered by discrepancies in the influence of time pressure on non-compliance behaviours.These findings highlight the need for technical solutions,educational outreach,and efficient enforcement practices to reduce pedestrians'non-compliant behaviour.

Delay Estimates of Mixed Traffic Flow at Signalized Intersections in China

Two characteristics of Chinese mixed traffic invalidate the conventional queuing delay estimates for western countries. First, the driving characteristics of Chinese drivers lead to different delays even though the other conditions are the same. Second, urban traffic flow in China is often hindered by pedestrians at intersections, such that imported intelligent traffic control systems do not work appropriately. Typical delay estimates for Chinese conditions were obtained from data for over 500 vehicle queues in Beijing collected using charge coupled device （CCD） cameras. The results show that the delays mainly depend on the pro- portion and positions of heavy vehicles in the queue, as well as the start-up situations （with or without interference）. A simplified delay estimation model considers vehicle types and positions that compares well with the observed traffic delays.

Study on pedestrian crossing behavior at signalized intersections

A clear understanding of pedestrian crossing behavior under mixed traffic conditions is needed for providing necessary infrastructure and also for enhancing pedestrian safety at signalized intersections. This paper attempts to analyze the crossing behavior of pedestrians like crossing speed, compliance with signal, and pedestrian-vehicular interaction under mixed traffic conditions and to iden- tify the influencing factors based on statistical tests. 775 pedestrian samples were observed from three signalized intersections in Mumbai, India for analyzing crossing behaviors and the significant factors affecting traffic signal compliance by pedestrians were identified by conducting Pearson＇s correlation co- efficient test, ANOVA test, and Student t test. Factors influencing pedestrian crossing speed had been studied and a design crossing speed had been determined for old and adult pedestrians at 0.95 m/s and 1.12 rn/s respectively. Logistic regression models had been developed in which the odds of pedestrian violation and interactions were modeled and verified. This study can help researchers and practitioners to understand pedestrian crossing behavior at signalized intersections and develop pedestrian delay mod- els under mixed traffic conditions.

Safety impacts of red light running photo enforcement at urban signalized intersections

Red light running at signalized intersections is a major safety concern in the United States. Statistics show that approximately 45 percent of crashes at intersections caused by red light running re- sult in severe injuries and fatalities, while only approximately 30 percent of all other types of intersec- tion crashes cause injuries or fatalities. Over the past decade, many US cities and counties have de- ployed red light running photo enforcement systems for signalized intersections within their jurisdictions to potentially reduce red light running related crashes. This study proposes an empirical Bayesian （ EB ） before-after analysis method that computes a weighed sum of crashes observed in the field and crashes predicted by safety performance functions （SPFs） to mitigate regression-to-mean biases for analyzing crash reduction effects of red light running enforcement. The analysis explicitly considers red light run- ning related crash types, including head-on, rear-end, angle, tuming, sideswipe in the same direction, and sideswipe in the opposite direction; and crash severity levels classified as fatal, injury, and proper- ty damage only （PDO）. A computational study is conducted to examine the effectiveness of the Chica- go program with red light running photo enforcement systems deployed for nearly two hundred signal- ized intersections. It is revealed that the use of red light running photo enforcement on the whole is pos- itive, as demonstrated by reductions in all types of fatal crashes by 4-48 percent, and injury-related an- gle crashes by 1 percent. However, it slightly raises PDO-related angle crashes and moderately increa- ses injury and PDO related rear-end crashes. The safety effectiveness of red light running photo en- forcement is sensitive to intersection location.

Capacity Reliability of Signalized Intersections with Mixed Traffic Conditions

The reliability of capacity of signalized intersections in mixed traffic conditions involving vehicles, bicycles, and pedestrians was investigated to complete the conventional, deterministic capacity calculations. Simulations using VISSIM provided estimates of capacity distributions, and demonstrated the effects of the analysis intervals on the distributions. With the random vehicle arrivals taken into account, a capacity reliability assessment method was given as a function. Assessments were also performed regarding the effects of the conflicting pedestrian and bicycle volumes on capacity reliability. The simulation indicates that the pedestrians and bicycles result in greater random fluctuations of exclusive turning lane capacities, but have less effect on the variability of shared lane capacities. Normal distributions can be used to model the capacities for intervals not less than 10 rain. At higher vehicular volumes, the capacity reliability is more sensitive to the mean and standard deviation of the pedestrian and bicycle volumes.

Analysis of delay variability at isolated signalized intersections

On urban arterials,travel time variability is largely dependent on the variability in the delays vehicles experience at signalized intersections.The interpretation of delay evolvement at intersections will give a comprehensive insight into arterial travel time variability and provide more possibilities for travel time estimation.Accordingly,an analytical model is proposed to study delay variability at isolated,fixed-time controlled intersections.Classic cumulative curves are utilized to derive average delay(per cycle) formulas by assuming a deterministic overflow queue.Then,an analogy with the Markov chain process is made to clarify the mechanism of stochastic delays and overflow queues at signalized intersections.It was found that,in undersaturated cases,the shape of the delay distribution changes very little over time,whereas for saturated and oversaturated cases the delay distribution is time-dependent and becomes flatter with an increasing number of cycles.The analysis of arrival distributions,e.g.,Poisson and binomial,produces the conclusion that the variability of arrivals has a significant effect on delay estimates in both undersaturated and oversaturated conditions.A larger variance of arrival flow results in a larger variance of delay distribution.All of these analyses can help road authorities to gain insights into arterial travel time variability.

Identification and Classification of Driving Behaviour at Signalized Intersections Using Support Vector Machine

When the drivers approaching signalized intersections(onset of yellow signal),the drivers would enter into a zone,where they will be in uncertain mode assessing their capabilities to stop or cross the intersection.Therefore,any improper decision might lead to a right-angle or back-end crash.To avoid a right-angle collision,drivers apply the harsh brakes to stop just before the signalized intersection.But this may lead to a back-end crash when the following driver encounters the former's sudden stopping decision.This situation gets multifaceted when the traffic is heterogeneous,containing various types of vehicles.In order to reduce this issue,this study's primary objective is to identify the driving behaviour at signalized intersections based on the driving features(parameters).The secondary objective is to classify the outcome of driving behaviour(safe stopping and unsafe stopping)at the signalized intersection using a support vector machine(SVM)technique.Turning moments are used to identify the zones and label them accordingly for further classification.The classification of 50 instances is identified for training and testing using a 70%-30% rule resulted in an accuracy of 85% and 86%,respectively.Classification performance is further verified by random sampling using five cross-validation and 30 iterations,which gave an accuracy of 97% and 100% for training and testing.These results demonstrate that the proposed approach can help develop a pre-warning system to alert the drivers approaching signalized intersections,thus reducing back-end crash and accidents.

Proactive Platooning Based on C-V2X to Relieve Congestion at a Signalized Intersection

Nowadays urban traffic congestion becomes a major issue due to the increase in vehicles that lead to more commuting time,accidents,traffic violations,and high fuel consumption.Platooning is a good way to solve traffic congestion because it drives with a smaller inter-vehicle distance than human-driving.This paper proposes proactive platooning based on C-V2X(cellular vehicle-to-everything)to relieve congestion.Proactive platooning reduces the inter-vehicle distance and increases the throughput of signalized intersections through integrating the networked control platooning and computation-centralized platooning.Model and simulation experiments of proactive platooning were conducted to verify the impact of inter-vehicle distance on platooning latency,platooning safety,and traffic throughput.Simulation results show that the optimal inter-vehicle distance under proactive platooning is less than half of human-driving at a signalized intersection.

Queue clearance rate method for estimating passenger car equivalents at signalized intersections

This study explored the use of queue clearance rate method for estimating passenger car equivalent （PCE） at signalized intersections. PCE was estimated based on the assumption that the rate at which a queue of vehicles clears the intersection is a function of its composition. Results of this method were compared with the results estimated by some popular techniques. A fourqegged intersection was simulated in VISSIM software and different techniques were used to convert the traffic mix into a uniform one. Parameters of VISSIM were modified to closely reflect the traffic behaviour under heterogeneous traffic conditions. All approaches of the intersection were loaded to saturated conditions and accuracy of estimated PCEs were established by comparing converted flow （PCE/h） with the capacity of an all-car traffic stream. Method based on saturation flow delivered the best result, but its use was limited to traffic composed only of two types of vehicles. Results of regression and optimization techniques were almost similar and the converted flow was close to the capacity of all-car stream. However, accuracy of these methods strongly relied on the correct measurement of saturation flow. Queue clearance rate method did not require value of saturation flow and yielded good estimates of PCE throughout the simu- lation runs. The maximum difference between the converted flow and capacity estimated with all car situations was found to be less than 10% in all cases considered in this study.

Effects of flashing green on driver's stop/go decision at signalized intersection

The primary objective of this work is to explore how drivers react to flashing green at signalized intersections. Through video taping and data procession based on photogrammetry, the operating speeds of vehicles before and after the moment when flashing green started was compared using paired-samples T-test. The critical distances between go and stop decisions was defined through cumulative percentage curve. The boundary of dilemma zone was determined by comparing stop distance and travel distance.Amber-running violation was analyzed on the basis of the travel time to the stop line. And finally, a logistic model for stop and go decisions was constructed. The results shows that the stopping ratios of the first vehicles of west-bound and east-bound approaches are 41.3% and 39.8%, respectively; the amber-light running violation ratios of two approaches are 31.6% and 25.4%, respectively;the operating speed growth ratios of first vehicles selecting to cross intersection after the moment when flashing green started are26.7% and 17.7%, respectively; and the critical distances are 48 m and 46 m, respectively, which are close to 44 m, the boundary of dilemma zone. The developed decision models demonstrate that the probability of go decision is higher when the distance from the stop line is shorter or operating speed is higher. This indicates that flashing green is an effective way to enhance intersection safety,but it should work together with a strict enforcement. In addition, traffic signs near critical distance and reasonable speed limitation are also beneficial to the safety of intersections.

Study on the model of pedestrian cross-time in signalized intersection

For studying the law of pedestrian cross-time in the signalized intersection, based on gap theory, a probability chorological discipline model of crossing pedestrians is built based on the observed data. Moreover, the number of pedestrians passing through in a critical gap is estimated under different conditions by three models. Then the models of pedestrian crosswalk average time, the 85th percentile pedestrian cross-time and the 90th percentile pedestrian cross-time are deduced. By quantitative analyses and the exemplification of the models, the main correlative factors acting on pedestrian cross-time are found, including the length of the crosswalk, the probability of the time-headway being less than the critical gap and the number of the turned motor vehicles in the intersection. The results indicate that the estimated errors of the models are less than 5%.