IESL Transactions 2019 Part B - Technical Papers 78

roadside embankments, and sign posts etc.
driver’s behavior were induced only by the

While being a threat to road users when they cross sectional and geometrical elements and
located closer to the edge of the road, roadside did not affect by the roadside configurations.
vegetation provides advantages under Results showed that drivers did not move away
environment and physiological categories like from tress and did not reduce the speed when
reduce heat by providing shelter, leading to the guardian barrier was absent. Therefore, the
decrease pavement temperature, decrease final result of this study showed that there is no
emissions, decrease sound pollution, reduce significant effect from road side elements to the
stress, decrease road rage, therefore just speed and the lateral position only geometrical
clearing the roadsides is not the best solution elements affect significantly.
for this matter. Evaluating the relationship
between roadside vegetation and vehicle speed Fitzpatrick eta al., (2014) done a study in the
/ lateral position is much needed for designing USA and it concluded, even though trees
roads and implementing speed limits to provide advantages like positive psychological
minimize the number of fatalities. implications such as reduce stress, decrease
road rage, alleviated depression, and expedited
2. Literature Review recovery from injuries; they did pose a
potential risk to drivers when they placed near
A few number of studies has been conducted to to the roadway. Crashes with fixed objects such
investigate the effecting roadway factors for as trees were seeming to be 1.9% of all crashes
vehicle speed and lateral position. and out of that 46% crashes were fatal.
According to previous simulation studies,
Calvi (2015) checked the effect of the roadway driver did not view tresses as hazardous due to
environment to the driver and an experiment lack of danger presented in a virtual drive thus
was performed with the fix-based driving conducting a field study was the better way to
simulator. About 44 volunteer drivers get more realistic data. In this study vegetation
participated for the study after fulfilling the density and clear zone size were examined
requirements of no experience with the driving based on selected speed, actual speed, and
simulator, at least four years of driving lateral position. After analyzing the data, it was
experience, and at least 3000 km average found that statistically significant differences in
annual driving distance on rural roads. The speeds between the six combinations of
study was developed considering five different sections.
geometrical elements including sharp left/right
curves (100 m radii), gentle left/right curves Lankathilake and Amarasingha (2017) studied
(400 m radii), and a tangent section. A roadside the effect of the roadside vegetation on vehicle
configuration with no tress was assumed as the because ROR crashes were identified as the
baseline. Speed of the vehicle and the lateral most critical type of crashes among roadway
position were the dependent variables of the related crashes. The main objective was to
study. It was found that drivers tend to travel obtain the effect of road side vegetation on
in low speed near to the center line of the road drivers’ speed selection and positioning of
in vegetated road sections, compared to the vehicles on the road. Two models were
road sections where there are no trees beside developed after analyzing the gathered data.
the road. Moreover, the spacing of the trees did Eleven variables were chosen which affect the
not affect for the lateral position but not for the speed and the lateral position based on
speed. literature review and interviewing licensed
drivers. Two roadways geometrical and three
Bella (2013) observed the variance of speed and vegetation variations were selected to do the
the lateral position of the driver with different study, therefore all together there were six
cross sections and geometrical elements. This combinations. Form each combination, data
multi factorial study was conducted using a around 50 vehicles were collected and collected
driving simulator. Reasons why the simulators data were analyzed using multiple regression
were used for study were the high degree of method and found a correlation between
realism on driver’s behaviors, low cost of considered parameters. Final results of the
conducting experiments, easy data collection, study showed that on straight roadway sections
and the highest degree of safety for test drivers and changing vegetation did not affect the
and easiness of controlling experiment speed selection of the driver, but increased
conditions (weather, traffic, and drivers). vegetation density had a positive impact on the
Statistical analysis showed that changes on lateral position of the vehicle. At horizontal
2
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roadside embankments, and sign posts etc.

driver’s behavior were induced only by the

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