User comfort and naturalness of automated driving: The effect of vehicle kinematic and proxemic factors on subjective response.

User comfort in higher-level Automated Vehicles (AVs, SAE Level 4+) is crucial for public acceptance. AV driving styles, characterised by vehicle kinematic and proxemic factors, affect user comfort, with "human-like" driving styles expected to provide natural feelings. We investigated a) how the kinematic and proxemic factors of an AV's driving style affect users' evaluation of comfort and naturalness, and b) how the similarities between automated and users' manual driving styles affect user evaluation.

The relationship between cycle track width and the lateral position of cyclists, and implications for the required cycle track width.

Introduction: Sufficient cycle track width is important to prevent single-bicycle crashes and collisions between cyclists. The assumptions on which the minimum width is based in guidelines is founded on only a few studies. The aim of the present study is to investigate the relationship between cycle track width and lateral position of cyclists.

Support systems for cyclists in automated traffic: A review and future outlook.

Interaction with vulnerable road users in complex urban traffic environments poses a significant challenge for automated vehicles. Solutions to facilitate safe and acceptable interactions in future automated traffic include equipping automated vehicles and vulnerable road users, such as cyclists, with awareness or notification systems, as well as connecting road users to a network of motorised vehicles and infrastructure. This paper provides a synthesis of the current literature on communication technologies, systems, and devices available to cyclists, including technologies present in the environment and on motorised interaction partners such as vehicles, and discusses the outlook for technology-driven solutions in future automated traffic.

(Mis-)use of standard Autopilot and Full Self-Driving (FSD) Beta: Results from interviews with users of Tesla's FSD Beta.

Tesla's Full Self-Driving Beta (FSD) program introduces technology that extends the operational design domain of standard Autopilot from highways to urban roads. This research conducted 103 in-depth semi-structured interviews with users of Tesla's FSD Beta and standard Autopilot to evaluate the impact on user behavior and perception. It was found that drivers became complacent over time with Autopilot engaged, failing to monitor the system, and engaging in safety-critical behaviors, such as hands-free driving, enabled by weights placed on the steering wheel, mind wandering, or sleeping behind the wheel.

External communication of automated shuttles: Results, experiences, and lessons learned from three European long-term research projects.

Automated shuttles are already seeing deployment in many places across the world and have the potential to transform public mobility to be safer and more accessible. During the current transition phase from fully manual vehicles toward higher degrees of automation and resulting mixed traffic, there is a heightened need for additional communication or external indicators to comprehend automated vehicle actions for other road users. In this work, we present and discuss the results from seven studies (three preparatory and four main studies) conducted in three European countries aimed at investigating and providing a variety of such external communication solutions to facilitate the exchange of information between automated shuttles and other motorized and non-motorized road users.