Experience simulating intelligent vehicle applications in Australia.
Nationwide, Australia
Crash reduction potential of connected vehicles in South Australia
Summary Information
This research estimated the potential safety benefits of enhancing in-vehicle autonomous emergency braking (AEB) systems with connected vehicle applications that communicate roadway safety information to equipped vehicles. A literature review was conducted to set up parameters and simulate safety benefits with and without each technology.
The study assumed that at the time these technologies would be available in the ITS marketplace connected vehicle applications would have the capability to provide advanced warnings of potential collisions, and AEB systems would have the capability to intervene on behalf of drivers to automatically apply brakes and avoid crashes. Current research indicates that connected vehicle applications have the potential to help AEB systems address right-angle and right-turn crashes, however, supporting pedestrian and head-on crashes would be limited.
In this study simulation software (PreScan) was used to emulate crash sensor behavior under a variety of environmental conditions. Risk curves were generated to estimate injury outcomes as a function of impact speed. Improvements were categorized by crash type, severity, and speed zone groups. Relative changes were applied to real-world crash data archived by the Center for Automotive Safety Research (CASR) to estimate overall crash reduction percentages where these technologies could be deployed.
- Initial research reported in this study indicated that AEB can be highly effective at reducing potential injuries and fatal crashes with benefits ranging from 30 to 50 percent and 20 to 40 percent, respectively.
- Follow-up research indicated that the addition of connected vehicle applications to AEB systems would further improve safety, decreasing injuries and fatalities by an additional 16 to 21 percent and 12 to 17 percent, respectively.
- Impacts on pedestrian and head-on crash types, however, would be limited. In these cases, injuries and fatalities would only decrease by an additional 14 to 18 percent and 7 to 12 percent, respectively.
