Comparison Between Familiar and Unfamiliar Driver Performance in a Multi-Lane Roundabout: A Case Study in Athens, Ohio A thesis presented to the faculty of the Russ College of Engineering and Technology of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Science Ashley N. Chucray August 2013 © 2013 Ashley N. Chucray. All Rights Reserved. 2 This thesis titled Comparison Between Familiar and Unfamiliar Driver Performance in a Multi-Lane Roundabout: A Case Study in Athens, Ohio by ASHLEY N. CHUCRAY has been approved for the Department of Civil Engineering and the Russ College of Engineering and Technology by Deborah S. McAvoy Associate Professor of Civil Engineering Dennis Irwin Dean, Russ College of Engineering and Technology 3 ABSTRACT CHUCRAY, ASHLEY N., M.S., August 2013, Civil Engineering Comparison Between Familiar and Unfamiliar Driver Performance in a Multi-Lane Roundabout: A Case Study in Athens, Ohio Director of Thesis: Deborah S. McAvoy A study was conducted in order to compare driver performance based on driver level of familiarity. The location for the study was a multilane roundabout in Athens, Ohio, the gateway to Ohio University’s campus, making this a unique location. Located to the east of the roundabout is a highway system that leads to most large surrounding cities. Two legs were focused on for this study, the leg that leads to the campus and the leg that leads to this highway system. Familiarity was defined by the presence of large university events such as graduation. The measures of effectiveness for this research were approaching speeds, circulating speeds, critical gap, entrance behaviors, and delay. The objective of this study was to determine what effect familiarity has on these measures of effectiveness. The results from this study showed that unfamiliar drivers had a tendency to drive slower for both circulating and approaching speeds than familiar drivers. Familiar and unfamiliar drivers performed the same for critical cap and inappropriate driver behavior. Also, no distinctive results were extracted from the delay parameter due to the calculation of delay not incorporating driver performance. 4 DEDICATION To my parents, Jill and Jerry Chucray, and my sister, Amanda Chucray. For believing in me, helping me through the tough times, and supporting my academic decisions. 5 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank my advisor, Dr. Deborah McAvoy, for seeing my potential and helping me through every step of my college career, both graduate and undergraduate. Without all of her support, academically and emotionally, neither of my degrees would be possible. I would also like to thank all of my committee members for their service and helpful suggestions for improving my thesis. Additionally, I would like to thank all of my fellow co-workers in the Safety and Human Factors Facility for assisting me with the collection, extraction, and analysis of my data. 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract ............................................................................................................................... 3 Dedication ........................................................................................................................... 4 Acknowledgments............................................................................................................... 5 List of Tables ...................................................................................................................... 9 List of Figures ................................................................................................................... 10 Chapter 1: Introduction ..................................................................................................... 11 1.1 Types of Roundabouts ............................................................................................ 12 1.2 When Roundabouts are Ideal .................................................................................. 13 1.3 Advantages of Roundabouts ................................................................................... 15 1.3.1 Cost .................................................................................................................. 15 1.3.2 Pollution ........................................................................................................... 16 1.3.3 Delay ................................................................................................................ 16 1.3.4 Safety ............................................................................................................... 17 1.4 Rationale for This Study ......................................................................................... 19 Chapter 2: Background ..................................................................................................... 21 2.1 Familiarity of Drivers ............................................................................................. 21 2.1.1 How Familiarity is Defined ............................................................................. 21 2.1.2 Public Opinion of Roundabouts ....................................................................... 22 2.1.3 Operational Knowledge ................................................................................... 25 2.2 Capacity and Saturation Levels .............................................................................. 28 2.2.1 Traffic Volume ................................................................................................. 28 2.2.2 Capacity ........................................................................................................... 29 2.2.3 Saturation Level ............................................................................................... 32 2.3 Pedestrian Consideration ........................................................................................ 34 2.3.1 Pedestrians Impacts .......................................................................................... 34 2.3.2 Reduction of Pedestrian Impacts ..................................................................... 35 2.3.3 Omission of Pedestrian Effects ........................................................................ 37 2.4 Delay ....................................................................................................................... 38 7 2.4.1 Control Delay Measurement ............................................................................ 39 2.4.2 Roundabout Effects on Delay .......................................................................... 41 2.5 Approach and Circulating Speed ............................................................................ 42 2.5.1 Speed Measurement ......................................................................................... 42 2.5.2 Roundabout Speeds .......................................................................................... 43 2.6 Vehicle Classification ............................................................................................. 44 2.6.1 Vehicle Classification Determination .............................................................. 44 2.6.2 Behavior Changes Based on Vehicle Types .................................................... 45 2.7 Gap .......................................................................................................................... 45 2.7.1 Gap Acceptance ............................................................................................... 46 2.7.2 Gap Measurement ............................................................................................ 46 2.7.3 Typical Gap Lengths ........................................................................................ 48 2.7.4 Gap Impacts ..................................................................................................... 49 2.8 Sample Size ............................................................................................................. 50 Chapter 3: Site Description ............................................................................................... 52 Chapter 4: Methodology ................................................................................................... 61 4.1 Data Collection and Equipment .............................................................................. 63 4.1.1 Manual Methods .............................................................................................. 63 4.1.2 Pneumatic Tubes .............................................................................................. 63 4.1.3Radar Detector .................................................................................................. 68 4.1.4 Video Camera .................................................................................................. 69 4.2 Sample Size Determination .................................................................................... 74 Chapter 5: Statistical Methodology .................................................................................. 79 5.1 Tests of Normality and Homogeneous Variance .................................................... 81 5.2 Solutions to Problems with Assumptions ............................................................... 83 5.3 One-way ANOVA .................................................................................................. 85 5.4 Post Hoc Tests .......................................................................................................