Driving Performance in a Simulator as a Function of Pavement and Shoulder Width, Edge Line Presence, and Oncoming Traffic

Driving simulation has primarily been used to study issues of driver distraction and to evaluate in-vehicle devices. The visualization and driver performance capabilities of simulators can be applied to more traditional traffic engineering problems as well. This project aims to demonstrate the usefulness of a driving simulator in evaluating geometric designs for two-lane roads. Paved surface width has been shown to be correlated with crash rates and travel speeds on two-lane rural roads throughout Texas. The current project examines how travel lane width, edge line striping, and shoulder width affect driver errors on these roadway types. Issues of simulator validity, scenario development, and simulator sickness are discussed