Author(s)

A.S. Al-Ghamdi

Abstract

Highway safety is a major concern to the public and to transportation professionals, so the number of crashes caused by poor visibility due to fog form an alarming statistic. Drivers respond to poor visibility conditions in different ways: some slow down; others do not. Many drivers simply follow the taillights of the vehicle ahead. Accordingly, hazardous conditions are created in which speeds are both too high for the prevailing conditions and highly variable. Findings are presented from a study of traffic crashes due to fog in the southern region of Saudi Arabia. The primary objective was to assess the effectiveness of a fog detection and warning system on driver behavior regarding speed and headway. This warning system includes visibility sensors that automatically activate a variable message sign that posts an advisory speed

Keywords