The assimilation and retention of in-vehicle traffic messages by older drivers

摘要: It is now common knowledge that the population of Europe and the rest of the'First World'is ageing. 40% of British adults (16+) are now over 50 years of age. By 2021 the proportion of over 50's in the UK is expected to reach about 48% of the adult population.(Coleman, 1993). As car driving is already central to most peoples' social and business activities, the number of older drivers within the population as a whole can also be expected to increase significantly. Any Road Transport Informatics (RTI) system intended to improve the safety and efficiency of the already congested road network must therefore be designed and evaluated with the older population in mind. Towards this end, this experiment investigated the ability of a group of older drivers (55+) to assimilate and retain messages presented on an in-vehicle visual display whilst driving on a busy UK motorway. The results of this experiment can be directly compared with a previous study involving drivers between the ages of 19 and 35 thus allowing age related differences to be explored (Graham and Mitchell, 1994).The experiment utilised an in-vehicle information system which has been developed by Jaguar Cars Ltd., to demonstrate the potential for using Short Range Communications (SRC) to support RTI applications. The demonstration system shows how weather, road and traffic information could be transmitted to vehicles using microwave transmissions from a roadside beacon infrastructure. The system is intended for use on motorways and may display information concerning approaching junctions and services, poor weather (eg fog ahead), or road traffic events (eg roadworks …