Traffic Safety Analysis of Overtaking Behaviour in the Rural Domain: A Case Study at a Village Entrance

Abstract

This work conducts a measurement campaign on a Federal Road in the rural area at a village entrance that lacks infrastructure for vulnerable road users (VRU) to analyse the behaviour of road in overtaking manoeuvres. The speed difference and lateral distance between motorised road users (MRUs) and VRUs are investigated, among other factors, as they affect the risk perceived by the VRUs. While the study found out that, in most cases, overtaking vehicles maintain the minimum safety distance to cyclists, 27% did not maintain it when entering the village and 14.47% when leaving the village. The observed speed difference of 36.84 ± 12.88 km/h and the significant number of manoeuvres not maintaining the minimum safety distance motivate the reduction of traffic speed as a resource-efficient option to enhance traffic safety.