Characteristics of unprotected left-turn accidents at signalised intersections

摘要

Some of the most dangerous accidents occur between left-turn and going straight traffic, because the relative impact forces are so high that the propensity for injury and damage is great (Chovan, Tijerian, Everson, Pierowicz & Hendricks, 1994). At signalised intersections with a permitted left-turn phase, the typical left-turn accidents happen when the unprotected left-turn vehicles fail to yield right-of-way. The main factors that adversely affect safety of the left-turn traffic include incorrectly accepting a gap between the coming-through traffic, sight obstruction to the left-turning drivers (Yan & Radwan, 2004), left-turn driver's distraction (Cooper & Zheng, 2002) and misunderstanding the intersection signal phase (Curtis, Opiela & Guell, 1988). Based on the Florida traffic accident data, this paper presents the results of a thorough investigation into the relationship between the left-turn accidents and a series of potential risk factors classified by driver characteristics, environments and vehicle type.