Exploring the Influencing Factors and Formation of the Blind Zone of a Semitrailer Truck in a Right-Turn Collision

Qingzhou Wang, Jiarong Sun, Nannan Wang, Yu Wang, Yang Song and Xia Li ()
Additional contact information
Qingzhou Wang: School of Civil and Transportation Engineering, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300401, China
Jiarong Sun: School of Civil and Transportation Engineering, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300401, China
Nannan Wang: School of Civil and Transportation Engineering, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300401, China
Yu Wang: School of Civil and Transportation Engineering, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300401, China
Yang Song: Hebei Key Laboratory of Geotechnical Engineering Safety and Deformation Control, Hebei University of Water Resources and Electric Engineering, Cangzhou 061001, China
Xia Li: School of Civil and Transportation Engineering, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300401, China

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 16, 1-23

Abstract: The blind zone that accompanies the right-turn process of semitrailer trucks is a major cause of crashes and the high fatality of vulnerable road users (VRUs). Understanding the relationship between the blind zone and right-turn collisions will play a positive role in preventing such accidents. The purpose of this study was to investigate the formation of right-turn blind zones for semitrailer trucks and to determine the factors (turning speed, turning radius, and collision position) influencing the severity of accidents through real-world vehicle tests and PC-CRASH simulation. The results show that the calculation model of the inner wheel difference blind zone established for semitrailer trucks can provide more accurate estimation than the model for rigid trucks, due to the consideration of a virtual third axle between the tractor and the trailer. On the other hand, the PC-CRASH simulation test indicates the turning speed and turning radius directly affect the scale of the inner wheel difference blind zone, and larger blind zone and encroachment on adjacent lanes increase the potential for collision. Moreover, the difference in collision position is closely related to whether the rider suffers a secondary crush. Front position is more likely to cause the cyclist to be crushed. For further analysis, the long-term interaction between the blind zones resulting from the right rearview mirror and the inner wheel difference also increases the risk during a right turn. Therefore, reducing the blind zone in the right-turn process is the key to improving right-turn safety for semitrailer trucks and VRUs.

Keywords: traffic safety; blind zone; semitrailer truck; collision accident; PC-CRASH (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/16/9805/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/16/9805/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:16:p:9805-:d:883613

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().