[ad_1]
The UW team is installing sensors along the Lake Forest Park runway near the junction of Highway 522 and Ballinger Way Northeast this month to test an application-based system that would warn drivers cyclists if they are about to cross each other.
The possibility of an accident occurs every few minutes on the Burke-Gilman Trail: a cyclist crosses along with alders and maple trees that conceal the traffic. A motorist has just turned back to Lake Washington and does not see trail users approaching the road on either side.
In the future, a navigation application could warn both of them, if an experiment conducted by graduate students of the University of Washington failed.
The UW team is installing three solar energy sensors this month along the trail at Lake Forest Park, near the junction of Highway 522 and Ballinger Way Northeast. Each contains a module that detects nearby Bluetooth devices – so, when a cyclist phone arrives within 10 meters, its presence is relayed to phones, vehicle navigation systems and nearby sensors.
Traffic Lab is a Seattle Times project that tackles the region's thorny transportation issues, highlights promising approaches to reducing traffic jams, and helps readers find the best way to get around. It is funded with the help of community sponsors, Alaska Airlines, CenturyLink, Kemper Development Co., NHL Seattle, Mutual Insurance Company PEMCO, Sabey Corp., Seattle Children's Hospital Hospital and Ste. Michelle Wine Estates. Seattle Times editors and journalists operate independently of the funders and maintain editorial control of Traffic Lab's content.
Learn more about Traffic Lab »| Follow us on twitter "
To use the system, travelers must download and activate the application.
In hot weather, more than 2,000 runners can pass busy places on the Burke-Gilman. In the area where sensors are being installed, motorists cross the trail to reach homes and the historic Lake Forest Park Civic Club along the shores of the lake.
Airside sensors represent a new strategy in the thriving science of connected vehicles. "Some cars can tell you if another car is coming, but they can not see pedestrians or cyclists," says UW's Smart Transportation Applications & Research (STAR) lab.
"Virtually everyone has a smartphone" and, as a result, an application-based system can spread quickly, said Yifan Zhuang, Ph.D. student in the team. The STAR detection system still requires months of testing, from the researchers carrying the equipment, before applications can be made available to the public, Zhuang said.
STAR's technical proposal was supported by the National Transportation Research Council, part of the National Academy of Science, Engineering and Medicine. A preliminary test on the UW campus revealed that it was reliable at nearly 90%, says the proposal document. Emitters can run on battery power for 20 to 30 days if solar charging fails, Zhuang said.
Lake Forest Park is already equipped with signs, reduced speed limits and signals that, if followed, would prevent accidents. But Zhuang said legal right turns always remind cars and bikes, where an app could improve safety.
At the Ballinger crossing, the trail tilts toward Highway 522 and the crossing crossing, creating short lines of visibility for cyclists heading south. Only one uninjured bike accident was reported at the corner of 2013-2017, says a map of the entire country by the law firm Colburn Law Firm of Issaquah.
Nationwide, the number of victims of "vulnerable users" has increased since 2009. Last year, 5,977 pedestrians and 783 cyclists died in collisions at the scale national.
But the STAR strategy raises questions: would people become too dependent on technology instead of slowing speed and eye contact to avoid accidents? Does the application discriminate against those who can not afford a cell phone plan or want to take advantage of the e-free path?
"Imagine, if we come to a site where eight out of 10 have it and two out of 10 do not have it. Are these two people more at risk? "Said Robert Schneider, chair of the Pedestrian Committee of the Transportation Research Board and a professor at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee. "There is something to worry about, but it is very useful to have a new technology that reduces the risk of an accident."
Toyota is already offering laser and radar pedestrian recognition for straight, well-lit streets, while encouraging drivers to remain alert and responsible. The pedestrian avoidance software could potentially save 800 lives a year, says the Volpe Center of the US Department of Transportation.
The STAR app adds the benefit of "seeing" in corners or at night. We do not know how the drivers here would react. A British One study found that the most accurate time to warn drivers was two seconds before impact, but the braking time was barely enough. Motorists preferred five seconds even if it triggered false alarms.
Patrick Hering, a frequent user of the trail, guiding his dog in front of UW researchers earlier this month, said, "If I ride a bike, I still think everyone will hit me, so I'm moving off the path. "
Claire Martini, policy officer for the 16,500-member Cascade Bicycle Club, predicts that cyclists will continue to trust their senses of sight and hearing, rather than their applications.
"With distracted driving on the rise and already one of the leading causes of accidents, it's paradoxical to let people watch their phones as they approach a high-conflict area," she said. Mr. Zhuang said that the team had the intention to eventually create a "visionless alert method" using audio or vibration.
Martini prefers four-way stops or orange turn signals that automatically trigger when approaching a cyclist, such as on the protected bicycle lane of Westlake Avenue in Seattle. Better yet, build connected roads of protected bike lanes that eliminate conflict, she said.
Despite doubts about this product, Martini said he appreciated the efforts to create bike-related technologies. The Seattle Department of Transportation is studying a system called "Give Me Green" that would save time for cyclists by giving them a quick green light. This system, which must be tested near UW, could reduce the red light of cyclists, said the city.
As with other technologies, the skills and software being improved in Lake Forest Forest Park could pave the way for a solution that we do not yet see.
[ad_2]
Source link
