How do the drivers react to different C-V2X-based communication conditions in dilemma zones? A driving simulator...

Area of Science:

• Transportation Engineering
• Human Factors in Driving
• Connected Vehicle Technology

Background:

• Dilemma zones at signalized intersections pose significant crash risks due to driver decision-making under uncertainty.
• Connected vehicle (CV) technologies, specifically cellular vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X), offer potential to improve driver responses in these critical scenarios.
• Existing research often overlooks the latest C-V2X specifications and their nuanced impact on driver behavior in dilemma zones.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how drivers interact with and benefit from C-V2X technology in dilemma-zone scenarios under various communication conditions.
• To evaluate the influence of different C-V2X communication states (perfect, interrupted, lost) on driver stop-or-go decisions and red-light running.
• To identify the heterogeneity in driver responses based on driving history under C-V2X communication disruptions.

Main Methods:

• Development of a co-simulation platform integrating Unity and VISSIM to model dilemma-zone scenarios.
• Simulation of four communication conditions: no communication, perfect communication, interrupted communication, and communication loss.
• Conducting randomized trials with 62 licensed drivers, assessing their stop-or-go decisions and red-light running outcomes during unpredictable green-to-yellow transitions.

Main Results:

• Drivers were more likely to proceed through intersections when C-V2X communication was lost compared to no communication.
• Both perfect and interrupted C-V2X communication generally reduced the tendency for drivers to proceed in dilemma zones.
• Perfect communication reduced red-light running by 3.44%, and even interrupted communication decreased it by 2.19%, with significant interaction effects observed for heterogeneous driver responses.

Conclusions:

• C-V2X technology significantly influences driver decision-making in dilemma zones, with varying impacts based on communication reliability.
• Communication loss exacerbates risks, while reliable or intermittently interrupted communication enhances safety by reducing red-light running and risky decisions.
• Context-aware implementation strategies for C-V2X are crucial for maximizing safety benefits and mitigating crash risks at signalized intersections.