Adjust your view! Wing-mirror settings influence distance estimations and lane-change decisions.pdfVIP

Transportation Research Part F 35 (2015) 112–118 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Transportation Research Part F journal homepage: /locate/trf Adjust your view! Wing-mirror settings in?uence distance estimations and lane-change decisions Christian B?ffel, Jochen Müsseler ? Work and Cognitive Psychology, RWTH Aachen University, Germany article info Article history: Received 6 April 2015 Received in revised form 31 August 2015 Accepted 7 October 2015 Available online 27 October 2015 Keywords: Wing-mirror settings Rear-view mirror Perceived distance Distance estimations Lane change abstract To perform lane-change maneuvers safely, suf?cient distance to the subsequent traf?c is required. In the present study distance estimations to the subsequent vehicle (Experiment 1) and lane-change decisions (Experiment 2) were gathered in dependency of left wing-mirror settings: Different vertical settings resulted in low and high vehicle positions with less or more pavement visible in the mirror. Additionally, the visibility or non-visibility of the observer’s rear door was varied. Findings indicated that a low vertical position of the following vehicle in the mirror and a visible rear door lead to shorter distance estimations and more cautious lane-change decisions than a high vertical position and a non-visible rear door. Consequently, wing-mirror settings are important for traf?c safety. ó 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Driving on multi-lane roads often requires lane changes and passing maneuvers. Crossing a subsequent vehicle’s path with an insuf?cient distance can cause dangerous situations and traf?c accidents. In the United States, lane-change crashes accounted for about 9% of the total traf?c accidents (Sen, Smith, Najm, 2003) and in Germany, lane-change crashes are the fourth most common cause of car accidents (Unger, 2011). The perceived distance to the subsequent vehicle through the wing mirror is an important factor when the driver int