3/31/2015
Get the message?
ITD tests what resonates with drivers
BOISE - When it comes to highway safety,
displaying the right message is central to understanding the science
behind influencing driver behavior. To that end, the Idaho Transportation Department is studying what messages work best for
Idaho’s overhead electronic message boards installed along state
highways.
Early findings indicate that drivers consistently respond to two messages (the sideways hash marks (/) indicate a line break; the messages use three lines on the readerboard):
“YOUR FAMILY WOULD / MISS YOU / PLEASE SLOW DOWN”
“YOU WOULD BE / MISSED / PLEASE SLOW DOWN”
Officials will test other messages in May and still others
this summer on selected electronic readerboards, referred to as a dynamic message
sign (DMS). Click here for an image of the overhead signs.
Messages run for one day at a time in multiple locations
around the state, with information on driver response collected by Idaho
State Police (ISP) and by ITD’s Automatic Traffic Recorders (ATRs).
For example, during the first phase of testing, ISP crews
monitored and collected real-time motorist speed, while ATRs captured
similar information. Data analysis paints a picture of how driver
behavior changes (or possibly doesn’t) in response to messages posted on the signs.
“We are developing safety messages to motivate drivers not to
engage in dangerous behavior such as speeding,” said Brent Jennings,
manager of the ITD Office of Highway Safety, which is conducting the study.
The goal of the project is to design and evaluate safety
messages based on proven psychological theory of behavior change.
Jennings is working with a team from University of California, San
Diego.
Similar initiatives have led to more effective safety-message design around the country, Jennings said.
He expressed appreciation to ITD’s partners at ISP and to
other state officials – Phil Braun, Chris Loffer, Margaret Pridmore,
Glenda Fuller – who are lending their expertise to the effort. He also
thanked officials in ITD districts for their help with the study.
The DMS Messaging Research Project will be completed this
year, with proven messages available for incorporation into ITD’s
messaging system.
As part of ITD’s ongoing safety program to better inform the
traveling public, the electronic signs have traditionally posted messages on road
conditions, traffic flow and AMBER Alerts. Electronic messages are
designed to improve traffic safety and emergency response.
The structure of a DMS includes a concrete foundation, pole and
cantilever structure, communications cabinet, protective guardrail and
the message board, which is 8-feet-tall by 25-feet-wide by 4-feet-deep
and weighs 4,000 pounds. Fitted with economical light-emitting diodes
(LED) lights, the board displays 18-inch-tall, amber characters, which
are legible at 1,100 feet.
