Cognitive compatibility of motorcyclists and drivers

Abstract

Incompatibility between different types of road user is a problem that previous research has shown to be resistant to a range of interventions. Cars and motorcycles are particularly prone to this. Insight is provided in this paper by a naturalistic method using concurrent verbal protocols and an automatic, highly reliable semantic network creation tool. Analysis of the structure and content of the semantic networks reveals a greater degree of cognitive compatibility on faster roads such as motorways, but evidence of more critical incompatibilities on country roads and junctions. The results are discussed in terms of practical measures such as road signs which warn of events behind as well as in front, cross-mode training and the concept of route driveability. © 2011 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.