Development of Baseline Safety Performance Measures for Highly Automated Commercial Vehicles

To analyze and evaluate data from previous naturalistic driving studies to determine parameters that should be included in future automated commercial motor vehicle (CMV) and truck platoon naturalistic driving studies and pilot tests.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has conducted numerous naturalistic driving studies to assess specific driver-related issues (e.g., fatigue, distraction, etc.). Further analysis of data from those studies and from telematic providers could inform future research efforts, including pilot tests of HACVs and platoons.

To support the testing and potential deployment of highly automated commercial vehicles (HACVs) and truck platoon operations, FMCSA will identify baseline safety measures for HACVs and truck platoon configurations. In this project, researchers will analyze and evaluate previous naturalistic driving data to determine vehicle safety performance measures that could be attributable to the action or inaction of the driver, including but not limited to: exceeding the speed limit, lane deviations, following too closely, emergency braking, emergency steering, and other discernible crash avoidance maneuvers.

FY17 Funding: $456,673

FY18 Funding: $200,000

For more information, contact Jeff Loftus of the Technology Division at (202) 385-2363 or jeff.loftus@dot.gov.

Virginia Tech Transportation Institute