In-depth Analysis of Durations of Discretionary Lane Changes on Freeway Under Varying Traffic Conditions

TL;DR

This study analyzes the durations of discretionary lane changes on freeways, revealing how vehicle type, lane change direction, and navigation speed influence maneuver times under various traffic conditions.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of lane change durations considering vehicle types, directions, and speeds, offering new insights into driver behavior and traffic flow dynamics.

Findings

Heavy vehicles take longer to complete lane changes.

Lane change direction affects passenger car durations but not heavy vehicles.

Navigation speed significantly influences lane change durations.

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate the characteristics of durations of discretionary lane changes (LCs) on freeways based on an enriched dataset. A comprehensive analysis of LC durations was conducted based on vehicle types, LC directions and navigation speeds. It was found that the heavy vehicle takes longer time to complete LC maneuver. The LC direction significantly influences the durations of passenger cars but has no significant influence on heavy vehicles. The navigation speed was found to have important influence on LC durations. However, it has different impacts according to vehicle types and LC directions. Further analysis of LC durations at different stages showed that drivers of passenger cars might use different strategies to perform LCs when they change lanes to different directions. However, drivers of heavy vehicles in both directions used less time to occupy the target lanes. Results of this study can be beneficial to understand the mechanism of LC process and the influence of LC on traffic flow.