Date of Award

9-2017

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Civil Engineering (MCE)

Department

Civil and Environmental Engineering

First Advisor

Prof. Yaser Hawas

Second Advisor

Dr. Francisco Daniel Benicio De Albuquerque

Third Advisor

Prof. Nedal T. Ratrout

Abstract

Measuring safety and mobility for various types of intersections is crucial in any transportation study. Many factors contribute to changing the effectiveness of the different types of intersections on mobility and safety. Deciding which type of intersection is most suitable in a particular environ and prevailing traffic conditions depends on the number of crashes, injuries, delay time, etc. This study focuses on two intersection types; signalized intersections and non-signalized intersections (only roundabouts). The aim of this research is to devise a theoretical modeling framework and hence a statistical-based methodology that can be used to assess the safety and mobility measures of these two intersection types. A survey is developed to capture drivers' perceptions of the safety of both intersections and to collect data about crashes and severity of crashes that car drivers have personally encountered in the past. The survey also substitutes for the insufficient official crash data records in Al Ain city (the city of the study). In-depth statistical analyses were conducted to identify the factors that are likely to affect the driver's perception and experience of safety. Various regression models are then calibrated using the identified most significant factors. The regression models are developed iteratively to predict the so-called "safety index" at intersections. This could be used to evaluate the safety of any intersection based on its geometry and prevailing traffic conditions.

The mobility effectiveness of intersections is typically assessed by measures or indicators such as control delay, travel time, LOS, etc. These measures were used herein to develop a unique mobility index for each intersection that differs based on its geometry aspects as well as its traffic conditions. The traffic analysis, software SIDRA INTERSECTION is utilized with modeling almost 204 hypothetical scenarios. The extracted measures of each modeled scenario were used to estimate the unique mobility index of each particular condition. Finally, conclusions were made based on the findings of the safety perception study together with the mobility analysis. Recommendations were made on future research directions.

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