Analysis of left-turn lane capacity under autonomous vehicle mixed flow considering the influence of pedestrian volume and crosswalk length

Abstract

Conflicts between pedestrians and left-turning vehicles cause pedestrian safety hazards and decrease vehicle turning capacity at signalized intersections. This commonly occurs in Japan where they share the same traffic light phase. Road capacity is influenced by the interaction between them. Autonomous vehicles (AVs) promise to improve the safety and efficiency of road networks. However, they will face the same problems as human-driven vehicles with pedestrian avoidance. Thus, this study estimated the capacity of the left-turn lane, in Japan, under AV mixed flows taking into account AV penetration rates, pedestrian flow rates, and crosswalk length. The impact of AVs on capacity was analyzed with different settings for the critical gap between vehicles and pedestrians. It was found that if AVs comply perfectly with traffic law, the capacity of the left-turn lane sharply decreases, especially in the case of long crosswalks.