A Study of the Effects of Autonomous Vehicles On Urban Road Design
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It is estimated that by 2040, 95% of new vehicles sold, or 96.3 million cars, will be fully autonomous. Within the next decade, it is likely that fully autonomous vehicles (AVs) will be driving on the roads. Currently, engineers design roads based on the human psychology. There are drivers that vary in experience as well as driving speed, and engineers have to design roads to accommodate various types of drivers on the road. AVs are sophisticated machines that are less prone to error and are programmed to operate in efficient ways. Therefore, stopping sight distance (SSD) and safety criteria are two of the many factors that will be different. This project will focus on the effects of autonomous vehicles on roadway design since they are new variables that designers have never accounted for. The team carried a study on the Ashland/Roosevelt intersection and found that with the current system of traffic lights at intersections with a high penetration rate of 90-100% of AVs, the Level of Service (LOS) will not change significantly. To fully utilize the AV technology, the team proposed an idea for intersections without traffic lights and for crosswalks to be pushed back away from the intersection to avoid any conflicts for vehicles and pedestrians at intersections. Highways and freeways ,also, remain a major concern as AVs proved to perform better on highways but not in the current design conditions. The team carried a study on IL 90-94 “Kennedy Expressway” which has reached its capacity. After analyzing the current conditions, the team proposed to add a reserved lane for AVs on the highway. Current AV technology has proven itself better than human drivers and with future advancement, there is no doubt AVs will be better drivers. This will surely increase our standards of transportation.