Abstract
Improving commercial vehicle safety continues to be an important priority for all stakeholders. There has been considerable focus in Indiana on reducing work zone related crashes, particularly those involving commercial motor vehicles encountering unexpected slowdowns or stopped traffic on the Interstate. Connected vehicle data have the potential to warn motorists of impending slowdowns and congestion in real-time. Multiple data providers have recently begun providing in-cab alerts to commercial vehicle drivers in areas of congestion, dangerous slowdowns, and work zone construction to increase driver awareness of potential hazards. This research utilized 1-second frequency data from trucks receiving in-cab alerts for Congestion or Dangerous Slowdown incidents on limited access roadways in Indiana to analyze the impact of these alerts on commercial vehicle driver behavior from about 30 seconds prior up to 5 minutes after an alert was received. Analysis of approximately 20,000 in-cab alerts sent to commercial vehicle drivers along 44 limited access corridors in Indiana for the months of April–June 2024 showed that 21.2% of drivers receiving a Dangerous Slowdown alert and 15% of drivers receiving a Congestion alert had reduced their speeds by at least 5 mph within 30 s of receiving an alert. As this area of in-cab alerts continues to evolve, it will be important to converge on a shared vision and common targets for these safety and mobility performance measures so that public agencies, in-cab alert providers, and trucking companies can work closely together to agilely improve these systems and increase driver confidence.
Keywords
connected trucks, in-cab alerts, congestion, dangerous slowdowns, driver alerts
Report Number
FHWA/IN/JTRP-2025/24
SPR Number
4803
Sponsoring Organization
Indiana Department of Transportation
Performing Organization
Joint Transportation Research Program
Publisher Place
West Lafayette, Indiana
Date of Version
2025
DOI
10.5703/1288284318232
Recommended Citation
Desai, J., Sakhare, R. S., Mathew, J. K., Sturdevant, N., Cox, E., & Bullock, D. M. (2025). Communication of fixed and mobile warnings to commercial trucks using in-cab notification (Joint Transportation Research Program Publication No. FHWA/IN/JTRP-2025/24). West Lafayette, IN: Purdue University. https://doi.org/10.5703/1288284318232