Next year, the University of Florida campus will become one of the world’s leading test sites for pedestrian safety.
The Florida Transportation Institute (UFTI) team of researchers, in collaboration with the Florida Department of Transportation and campus and city partners, is studying new technologies that can save lives by providing real-time warnings to drivers and pedestrians before another collision becomes fatal.
The study is led by Lily Eleftheriadou, director of the UFTI. The project will install pedestrian and vehicle detection sensors on Gale Le Merand Drive and Stadium Road in the heart of campus. Notification systems, including both in-vehicle alarms and smartphone apps for pedestrians and cyclists, share information about upcoming hazards. This set of technologies is known as the connected vehicle infrastructure.
Eleftheriadow’s team will study the effectiveness of these systems at both regular intersections and, crucially, at so-called median crossings — intersections between intersections where pedestrians often cross but lack traffic signals and other means of controlling cars. Most pedestrian deaths occur outside of intersections, including at median crossings.
“This special collaboration between our university, the city and the Florida DOT is creating a living laboratory, which means that the test is on real roads,” said Elefteriadou. “We study more natural behavior in realistic settings. There’s no substitute for that.
In addition to UFTI’s transportation research experience, UF provides an ideal location for studying connected vehicle infrastructure due to the diversity and complexity of transportation on campus.
“We have good pedestrian and bicycle traffic. We have e-scooters, cars and a bus system. You get all this in one place and you don’t have to go to different places to study different things,” said Pruthvi Manjunatha, project leader and manager of the I-STREET Living Lab at Advanced Technology Traffic Research Center UFTI, which conducts the research.
While autonomous vehicle technologies — whether it’s Tesla’s Autopilot or the increasingly common lane-assist technology in new cars — are gaining attention for their ability to reduce collisions between cars, connected vehicle infrastructure promises to reduce accidents among all road users. Pedestrians included. Because this connected infrastructure aims to capture the behavior and prioritize the safety of all road users, rather than just focusing on drivers.
But infrastructure is not the whole answer. Even in a fully connected world, drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists must receive alerts in a way that allows them to respond quickly and intuitively without distracting them from the road.
“Even if we have the technology, it’s the way we deliver the message that makes the difference. If we can find the best way to deliver the message, that will be a game changer,” Manjunatha said. “Regardless of the road user, these alerts should help them make better decisions.”
Through focus groups and real road crossings, Elefteriadou’s team evaluates how pedestrians and cyclists use a smartphone app to receive warnings. The researchers study how drivers respond to dashboard alerts sent from roadside sensors. That information helps the scientists adjust the alerts to encourage consistent use.
Following the roughly year-long study, the researchers will produce a final report that will help universities like UF and communities across the country more effectively implement connected vehicle infrastructure technology.
“It’s only a matter of time for cities to improve infrastructure and driver connectivity. The quality of the data coming out of this project will definitely help us design better solutions, Elefteriadou said.
If you are a UF student or employee interested in participating in the study, please contact Pruthvi Manjunathan at pruthvim@ufl.edu.
August 29, 2022
