Emerging modes and innovative safety countermeasures: investigating their impacts on road safety, traffic operations and the environment

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In recent years, active modes of transportation (cycling and walking) have been seen as part of the solution to deal with the continuous growth of urban mobility and its negative effects. More recently, new modes of transportation, referred to as micro-mobility modes (e.g., e-scooters and e-bicycles), have also emerged. However, the increasing transportation demand along with the diversification of transportation modes has raised road safety concerns. Accordingly, cities are looking for innovative countermeasures to protect vulnerable road users (VRUs) without deteriorating traffic operations. Despite the recent developments, important research gaps and questions have unfolded. This includes the fact that automated data collection tools have some limitations under critical traffic conditions (e.g., high volumes, mixed traffic, low-visibility). Moreover, existing tools do not often provide microscopic data for all modes (speed, density, gap, delay, etc.). In addition, the relationships between traffic parameters and performance measures within and across modes have rarely been studied in mixed traffic conditions. Another important research gap is the impacts of innovative VRU countermeasures (e.g., protected intersections, active warning devices). These countermeasures have rarely been evaluated, not only from the traffic safety point of view, but also from the operational and environmental perspectives. Research on the impact of micro-mobility modes on both traffic operations and safety is also very limited, in particular in Canada and the US. The general goal of my research program is to develop new knowledge and innovative solutions to monitor and to improve the safety and traffic operations of active and new modes under mixed traffic conditions. The specific objectives of this research program are: 1) to build a LIDAR-video based automated system for collecting microscopic data and for investigating the traffic flow parameters and their relationships within and across modes; 2) to develop methodologies for evaluating the effectiveness of innovative countermeasures, not only from the safety, but also from the operational and emission perspectives; 3) to develop a methodology to investigate the implications of new micro-mobility modes on both road safety and traffic operations. In the accomplishment of these objectives, six graduate students (three PhD and three master's students) will be involved. The long-term goal is to develop methods and tools to better monitor and understand the impacts of emerging modes and innovative countermeasures on traffic safety, operations, and the environment. This program will generate significant knowledge and methodologies that can help practitioners (e.g., transportation engineers and city planners) better evaluate the multiple impacts of emerging technologies, micro-mobility, and innovative geometric designs, which is critical to ensure the sustainable development of our cities.