Post Take-Over Performance Varies in Drivers of Automated and Connected Vehicle Technology in Near-Miss Scenarios

This study examined the impact of monitoring instructions when using an automated driving system (ADS) and road obstructions on post take-over performance in near-miss scenarios.

Past research indicates partial ADS reduces the driver's situation awareness and degrades post take-over performance. Connected vehicle technology may alert drivers to impending hazards in time to safely avoid near-miss events.

Forty-eight licensed drivers using ADS were randomly assigned to either the active driving or passive driving condition. Participants navigated eight scenarios with or without a visual obstruction in a distributed driving simulator. The experimenter drove the other simulated vehicle to manually cause near-miss events. Participants' mean longitudinal velocity, standard deviation of longitudinal velocity, and mean longitudinal acceleration were measured.

Participants in passive ADS group showed greater, and more variable, deceleration rates than those in the active ADS group. Despite a reliable audiovisual warning, participants failed to slow down in the red-light running scenario when the conflict vehicle was occluded. Participant's trust in the automated driving system did not vary between the beginning and end of the experiment.

Drivers interacting with ADS in a passive manner may continue to show increased and more variable deceleration rates in near-miss scenarios even with reliable connected vehicle technology. Future research may focus on interactive effects of automated and connected driving technologies on drivers' ability to anticipate and safely navigate near-miss scenarios.

Designers of automated and connected vehicle technologies may consider different timing and types of cues to inform the drivers of imminent hazard in high-risk scenarios for near-miss events.