Exploratory Advanced Research . . . Next Generation Transportation Solutions

advance research into human visual performance, 

safety analysis, and roadway design.”

Drivers process data through two visual 

modes—focal and ambient—at the same time. It is 

not yet fully understood how these two ways of 

seeing, and the driver in turn, are influenced by 

changes in the driving environment. Focal vision 

allows drivers to read signs, recognize objects and 

pedestrians at the side of the road, and distinguish 

images in rear-view mirrors while ambient vision is 

providing information about speed and direction 

that allows the driver to guide the car intuitively. 

One danger of nighttime driving is that although 

focal vision is confined to the narrow, short area lit 

by headlamps and any overhead lighting, ambient 

vision is relatively unimpaired. The driver’s continued sense of competence in guiding the vehicle 

masks the danger of seriously diminished focal vision. This study is exploring whether various roadway features and driving conditions affect these 

two ways of viewing the environment differently.

The current research will provide information 

on when and where drivers place their attention 

and how their driving is affected by what they see. 

Learning how low light, aging eyesight, and external stimuli affect a night driver’s perceptions is a 

particularly important aspect of the study as the 

average age of road users is increasing. 

Capturing Data on Looking and 

Lighting 

“A major challenge for researchers is to capture 

information simultaneously about the driving environment and driver reactions,” Andersen says. To 

this end, investigators have married two innovative 

technologies—a luminance camera system developed at the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute 

and an infrared eye-tracking system purchased 

and modified by the Texas Transportation Institute—

to create a single, noninvasive system that can 

measure the luminance of objects, pavement 

markings, and signage while tracking drivers’ eye 

movements. 

The Exploratory Advanced Research Program Fact Sheet

Building a Dynamic Model of Driver 

Vision

Although standards and installation criteria for the 

use of roadway features—signs, lights, pavement 

markings—are based on research, empirical information on how these features actually affect driver 

perceptions and reactions under real-world conditions is lacking. This EAR study has been deploying 

new technology and developing a new framework 

within which the variables that affect nighttime driving visibility and driver behavior can be measured 

and analyzed more accurately. Investigators at the 

Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, the Texas 

Transportation Institute, and Franklin & Marshall 

College are collaborating on the project.

“This research will provide a better foundation 

for evaluating the impact of different roadway features on safety,” comments Carl Andersen of FHWA’s 

Office of Safety Research and Development. “With 

new data collection and analysis methods, we can 

understand more clearly how lighting levels, pavement markings, and roadway signage affect the 

perceptions and reactions of drivers. The study will 

Driving at night is substantially more dangerous than driving during the 

day—the fatality rate is three to four times 

higher. A novel approach to studying how 

roadway features can improve night-driving safety is the focus of “Development of 

Methodologies to Evaluate Nighttime 

Safety Implications of Roadway Visual 

Scene Under Cognitive Task Loads,” an 

Exploratory Advanced Research (EAR) 

Program study awarded by the Federal 

Highway Administration (FHWA) in 2008. 

Eyes on the Road 

Developing a Dynamic Model of Driver Vision
By using this integrated monitoring system, investigators have been gathering data on Virginia 

Smart Road and Texas Transportation Institute test 

tracks. Two age groups have been enrolled in the 

tests, representing younger (ages 16–34 years) and 

older (ages 64 years and above) drivers. To examine other variables, researchers have been collecting data under two levels of overhead lighting (none 

and high-pressure sodium), two types of signs at 

varying locations, two types of objects (such as pedestrians and obstacles), glare and nonglare conditions, and two types of pavement marking. By observing drivers’ speed, steering variability, and 

lane-keeping accuracy, the investigators will draw 

inferences about the impact of roadway features 

under varying conditions. Trends and probabilities 

will be calculated for a variety of roadway environmental elements.

Future Efforts

After the project data have been analyzed, FHWA 

and the research team will convene an expert peerreview panel for a real-world demonstration and 

model review. On the basis of the expert review and 

additional data collected, the investigators will revise the model and formulate future directions for 

continuing research. Those directions will likely include developing a complete driver visual model; 

carrying out factor testing on other variables, such 

as weather conditions, cognitive loading, and fatigue levels; and conducting rural and urban testing 

under varying conditions. 

Learn More

For more information on this EAR Program project, 

contact Carl Andersen, FHWA Office of Safety 

Research and Development, at 202-493-3366 

(email: carl.andersen@dot.gov).

What Is the Exploratory 

Advanced Research Program?

FHWA’s Exploratory Advanced Research (EAR) 

Program focuses on long-term, high-risk research with a high payoff potential. The program addresses underlying gaps faced by applied highway research programs, anticipates 

emerging issues with national implications, 

and reflects broad transportation industry 

goals and objectives.

To learn more about the EAR Program, visit 

the Exploratory Advanced Research Web site 

at www.fhwa.dot.gov/advancedresearch. The 

site features information on research solicitations, updates on ongoing research, links to 

published materials, summaries of past EAR 

Program events, and details on upcoming 

events. For additional information, contact 

David Kuehn at FHWA, 202-493-3414 (email: 

david.kuehn@fhwa.dot.gov), or Terry Halkyard 

at FHWA, 202-493-3467 (email: terry.halkyard@

fhwa.dot.gov).

Publication No. 

FHWA-HRT-11-033

HRTM-04/05-11(1M)E

Eyes on the Road 

Developing a Dynamic Model of Driver Vision

Image other side: 

©www.istockphoto.com/

Jason_V