Human Factors in Highway-Rail Crossing Accidents: The Influence of Driver Decision Style

Abstract

Summary: This paper explores the hypothesis that driver decision-making style influences highway-rail crossing accidents. To investigate this, we have designed an analysis of variance experiment with three independent variables: "driver decision style," "driver time pressure" and "intersection complexity." To simulate the driving conditions, we identified and videotaped a number of dangerous crossings in downtown Los Angeles. The tapes represented different environmental complexities and time pressures a driver experiences while crossing an intersection. The tapes were played back to the subject drivers. The subjects were classified according to their decision styles. Dependent measures were designed based on a driver's decision to cross the intersection. This paper presents the conceptual approach and the experimental design for this research.

Rail human factors: Past, present and future

“…Even more removed from the proper functioning of the railway, it is a sad fact that for some in society their contact with the railway is through trespass, vandalism and suicide (which added together comprise by far the greatest cause of deaths on the railway)-see Lobb et al (2001). This is very related to a current area of great concern and human factors attention, where the public and the railways interface at level crossings (see Cairney, 2003;Henderson et al, 2003;Rahimi and Meshkati, 2001;Wigglesworth, 2001).…”