Simulation Study Found That Combined Overhead Speed Sign and Speed Monitoring Displays Achieved Speed Compliance by Up To 75 Percent.
Study in Western Puerto Rico Assessed the Effectiveness of Four Countermeasures for School Zone Speeding Using a Driving Simulator.
Mayagüez
Assessing a two-step posted speed reduction as a potential countermeasure to improve safety in school zones using driving simulation
Summary Information
Speeding remains a contributing factor to severe injuries and deaths in school zones. As 68 percent of school zones in the western region of Puerto Rico encounter drivers above the posted speed limit, it is important to identify strategies to reduce speeding in school zones to ensure safety in these areas with children. This simulation study assessed the effectiveness of four countermeasures for school zone speeding using a driving simulator, including Two-Step Reduction (TSR) signage, overhead signs, forward reduce speed ahead (RSA) signs, and speed monitoring displays (SMD).
METHODOLOGY
The S.U. Samuel Adams School, located in a rural area of the Aguadilla municipality in western Puerto Rico, was selected as the school zone to be simulated and examined. The selected school has direct access to the PR-2 arterial road, a highway part of the National Highway System (NHS), and has two lanes in each direction with a speed limit of 45 mph. The study involved participants in a simulated driving scenario, testing both with and without the intervention of four school zone speeding countermeasures.
FINDINGS
The main findings of the study are as follows.
- A combination of using an overhead sign, flashing beacon assembly, and SMD led to an increase in speed compliance of 75 percent.
- A combined usage of TSR and an overhead sign led to a 60 percent increase in speed compliance.
- The standalone TSR method is most effective in those roadway segments where the difference between the posted speed limit and the school zone speed is more than 10 mph.
