Evaluation of Driving Behavior using Virtual Reality Experiment at Expressway Sag and Merging/ Diverging Sections

This research studies driving behavior at sag and merging/ diverging sections on expressways to evaluate several operational schemes to be provided. In Japan, expressway congestion has been frequently observed at sags as well as merging sections. To alleviate the congestion, new operational schemes have been provided such as message signs at a sag to avoid deceleration, dynamic road markings at a merging/ diverging sections. In order to put these new operational schemes to practical use on actual roads efficiently, experiments that identified influences of the schemes on driving behavior were conducted by using a virtual reality experiment system.