1In-Vehicle Displays for Enhancing Traffic Safety in Road Tunnels

When driving in a tunnel the driver is confined to a dark closed environment for a long period of time, with very little clearance on both sides of the lane. This environment may impair performance and lead to severe accidents. Accidents in tunnels often involve rapidly spreading fires that engulf many drivers. Giving drivers early warnings and clear instructions how to respond to different emergencies should reduce accidents and their severity. To improve safety, the European Union has initiated a "Safe Tunnel " project in which drivers are provided with a 2-way means of communication with the tunnel traffic control room, through an in-vehicle visual and auditory display. Emergency information, road conditions and vehicle diagnosis and Speed tele-control will be transmitted to drivers approaching the tunnel and inside it. For this study, two alternative interactive displays were designed for truck drivers in tunnels, and prototypes of these displays are currently being integrated in vehicles made by two leading European truck manufacturers. The experiment presented in this paper evaluates drivers ' performance with the two different displays, while driving in a simulated tunnel, designed with the same parameters as one of the longer European tunnels. The study presents the conditions that had to be designed into the system, the ergonomic rationale behind the specific displays, and the relative benefits of the two systems in responding to emergency situations, based on empirical results of the simulation experiment. The effectiveness is evaluated in terms of the mental load each device places on the driver as measured by accuracy of responses and reaction times to the displayed information, as well as in terms of disruption in vehicle control