Examining Driver Handoff at Rural Intersections

Abstract

The goal of this work was to explore whether the complexity of different rural intersections influenced driver trust and comfort in a conditionally automated vehicle (i.e., level 3 SAE) navigating the intersection for them. In an online survey platform (UMN Qualtrics), 271 participants watched five brief curated 360-degree videos, edited to convey a fisheye of the windshield and side window views, of a simulated automated vehicle navigating different rural intersections, with or without the presence of traffic. Participants were asked to make a decision about whether they would like to take over control and rated their trust and comfort with the automated vehicle navigating each intersection. Intersection type was not predictive of AV trust and comfort with navigating the different intersections, however, drivers’ takeover decisions, level of education, past experience driving on J-turn intersections and location predicted the level of trust and comfort with the automated vehicle. Additionally, predictors of being more comfortable with L3 automated vehicles driving on J-turn intersections included education, having more automation features (e.g., ACC, LKA) in their existing vehicles and the belief that J-turns are a good idea. The outcome of this work led to the development of a repository of curated forward- and side-view simulated videos that were made publicly available for future research projects.