In-vehicle workload assessment: Effects of traffic situations and cellular telephone use

Problem: Assessment of drivers' on-road workload is an important traffic safety consideration. This study was conducted to examine the effects of cellular phone communication on driving performance, with particular emphasis on variations in task demand in different traffic situations. Method: T...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of safety research 2006, Vol.37 (1), p.99-105
Main Authors: Liu, Bor-Shong, Lee, Yung-Hui
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Automobile Driving
Cell Phone - utilization
Cellular phone
Cellular telephones
Distraction
Driver workload
Driving performance
Female
Heart rate
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Physiology
Risk Assessment
Taiwan
Traffic accidents & safety
Workloads
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Problem: Assessment of drivers' on-road workload is an important traffic safety consideration. This study was conducted to examine the effects of cellular phone communication on driving performance, with particular emphasis on variations in task demand in different traffic situations. Method: Twelve participants were asked to drive on urban roads and motorways with or without concomitant mathematical-addition tests relayed via cellular phone. Measurements included task and driving performance, physiological responses, and compensatory behavior. Results: Analysis of task performance revealed that mean response time was markedly increased (11.9%) for driving on urban roads compared to motorways. The mean driving speed only decreased 5.8% in the presence of phone tasks in comparison to normal driving without distractions. In addition, overall physiological workload increased through compensatory behavior in response to the phone tasks. Conclusions: Driving with phone use in different traffic environments induced measurable variations in driver workload. Impact on Industry: When faced with heavy traffic, a greater safety margin is typically adopted, with more lowered driving speed and restricted phone use, and it can be assumed that there is a general trade-off between tasks to preserve driving safety.
ISSN:0022-4375
1879-1247
DOI:10.1016/j.jsr.2005.10.021