Project overview
Cyclists are disproportionately represented in accident statistics; for every 26 car drivers killed or seriously injured per billion vehicle miles, 1,011 pedal cyclists are killed or seriously injured. Typical cycling accidents include the motorist emerging into, or turning across, the path of the cyclist and cyclists’ riding off the pavement into the path of a vehicle or making right turns into the path of a vehicle. These dangerous interactions can be understood from the perspective of incompatible situation awareness therefore different road users interpreting the same road situation differently.
This research used a Cross-Modal training approach, where different road users received training on how another road user interprets the road situation and behaves in different situations. Car drivers were trained on how a cyclist interprets the road situation and how might they behave, i.e., what it is like to be a cyclist, and cyclists were trained on how a driver interprets the road situations and how they might behave, i.e., what it is like to be a driver.
The project was split into two elements:
- a questionnaire survey to explore attitudes towards and perceptions of the ‘other’ road user (and the rules that govern them),
- an online training course.
The questionnaire aspect found some significant failing in knowledge of the differing rules and regulations governing the behaviour of cyclists on the roads as well as some striking differences in the attitudes self-identifying cyclists and drivers have of those that use either mode. The training aspect built on results of that questionnaire work.
Two courses were designed: one that taught self-identified cyclists what it is like to be a driver, the other teaching self-identified drivers what it is like to be a cyclist. Course content was framed in terms of three components: knowledge (what we know about something), skills (our physical abilities to perform a task), and attitudes (the beliefs we hold). Results captured using questionnaires completed before, immediately after, and six weeks after course completion, showed improvements in knowledge and skills in both groups. Attitudes, however, were more resistant to change. This has implications for interventions aimed at improving empathy and understanding between road users and, ultimately, road safety.
Further information on project outcomes is given on the Road Safety Trust website.
