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Published on: September 18, 2012
Body-pillar vision obstructions and lane-change crashes
Michael Sivak1, Brandon Schoettle, Matthew P Reed
1The University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2150, USA. sivak@umich.edu
Introduction:
This exploratory study investigated the relationship between vision obstructions from body pillars and lane-change crashes.
Methods:
The vision obstructions were quantified by measuring, from the driver's perspective, the horizontal angular sizes and locations of the driver-side A-, B-, and C-pillars. The sample consisted of 21 vehicle models, including 13 passenger cars, 6 SUVs, 1 minivan, and 1 pickup truck. To control for driver differences, going-straight crashes were used for comparison, with the dependent variable being the ratio of lane-change crashes to going-straight crashes. The analysis used North Carolina crash data.
Results:
The results of a multiple regression indicate that the relative frequency of lane-change crashes tended to increase with both wider A-pillars and with A-pillars located farther away from straight ahead.
Impact On Industry:
The finding supports the hypothesis that visibility obstructions due to A-pillars have safety implications.
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