Daemen College : Student Life : Daemen Insight : Naturalistic Driving Studies - Decreasing the Dangers of Highway Driving
Naturalistic Driving Studies - Decreasing the Dangers of Highway Driving
By Emily Stoll
If you have a license, you’ve probably driven the highway. But you probably never realized how dangerous it is. Each year, according to CUBRIC, more than 30,000 people are killed in highway-related accidents, and two million are injured.
Because of this, CUBRIC and National Academies of Sciences are doing a Naturalistic Drive Study, in which Erie County is one of the six locations chosen to participate. This two-year study is the country's biggest highway safety research effort so far, says CUBRIC, with almost 500 Erie County Residents being recruited. The study installs “non-obtrusive cameras and sensors” in the vehicles of participating drivers so the researchers can study interactions between driver, vehicle and road. The results will hopefully allow for improvements in cars, roads and driver training programs – all to promote safety, said CUBRIC.
The researchers will equip 3,100 drivers’ vehicles across the U.S. with a Data Acquisition System (DAS) – forward radar, continuously recording video cameras, GPS, accelerometers and more – so they can see how the driver and vehicles perform and collect data on traffic, lighting and weather conditions.
CUBRIC is still recruiting drivers and says they will provide $500 compensation to participating drivers for each full year of involvement. Applicants must fill out a questionnaire and take some tests, which will provide CUBRIC with relevant information to assist in their research.
Participants must:
- Be a resident of Erie County, NY
- Be age 16 or older and have a valid NY State Driver’s License
- Own or lease the vehicle they regularly drive or get signed permission from the vehicle owner to use it in the study.
The vehicle’s make, model and year must meet the study guidelines. Most eligible cars are 2004 or newer, and a complete list of approved vehicles is available online. To participate in the study, call 877-495-1556 and reference the “driving study.” More information is available online.
CUBRIC says any data that personally identifies the participant or the vehicle’s passengers will be given strict confidentiality and will only be available to authorized project personnel and employees of the research sponsors.
For those who participate, DAS installation will take about four hours. According to CUBRIC, “The installed equipment will not cause damage to or change the vehicle’s driving, handling or safety characteristics. The vehicle will be returned to its original state when its participation in the program is done.”
The dangers of highway driving are numerous, but some can be fixed. Hopefully, CUBRIC’s research will provide the information needed to save lives.