Safety and Smoothness Evaluation Based on Driving Behavior of Vehicles Overtaking Electric Kickboard

Abstract

In April 2023, the revised Road Traffic Law was promulgated, and electric kickboards are treated as specified small motorized bicycles. It is important to ensure safety and smoothness in road spaces where vehicles and electric kickboards are mixed. Therefore, in this study, measurements were made on five roads with different widths. The study then clarifies the effects of the different width configurations on the driving behavior of vehicles overtaking an electric kickboard, and based on this overtaking behavior, the safety and smoothness of each road is then evaluated. The results showed that safety and smoothness were reduced on narrower roads than the width configuration of a normal road. Furthermore, the results showed that on wide routes, the separation distance can easily be maintained at 1.5 m or more, and safety is not an issue. On the other hand, the results also showed that the smoothness of the road is reduced especially when the vehicle speed is high.