Investigation and Mitigation of Driver Confusion at Modern Roundabouts
Record Type: DOT

This proposed research will deal with two issues: investigation and mitigation of roundabout elements that lead to driver confusion and development of a flexible criteria matrix by which the Nebraska Department of Roads (NDOR) can evaluate arterial intersections to identify good candidates for conversion to roundabouts. The use of modern roundabouts along arterial roadways is relatively new in Nebraska. The first urban arterial roundabout was opened to traffic in June of 2002 at the intersection of 33rd and Sheridan Blvd in the City of Lincoln. Citizens and some professionals were somewhat skeptical of this roundabout to improve traffic delay and safety. However, after the construction of this roundabout the City of Lincoln has reported reduced traffic delays and the Nebraska Department of Roads (NDOR) has reported a reduction in traffic accidents. The objectives of this research include the: (1) identification of user issues and confusing elements of roundabouts via surveys and development of mitigation measures for safer usage of arterial roundabouts in Nebraska; and (2) development of a criteria matrix for arterial intersections that NDOR can use to check the candidacy of intersections for conversion to single-or multi-lane roundabouts.
Start date: 2006/7/1
End date: 2008/6/30
Status: Active
Contract/Grant Number: P598
Total Dollars: 123152
Source Organization: Nebraska Department of Roads
Date Added: 07/06/2006
Index Terms: Roundabouts, Traffic control, Traffic circles, Arterial highways, Traffic accidents, Traffic delay, Driver experience, Awareness, Research projects, Nebraska,

Federal Aviation Administration
800 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20591
USA

Turek, Don

Lenzen, Laura

Singh, Virendra

Knott, Jim

University of Nebraska, Lincoln
College of Engineering and Technology
Lincoln, NE 68503
USA

Khattak, Aemal