Nudges being tested in MeBeSafe
The first road tests have now been performed within the MeBeSafe project and some of the results show that some of the nudging principles actually works excellent!
MeBeSafe has found that flat stripes running across the road can help cyclists to slow down speed. These stripes cannot be felt, but they get progressively closer together. And as they get closer and closer together on your approach, your instinctive perception is that you are going faster and faster – so you slow down. The initial results actually indicate a remarkable combination of effects. The stripes seem to generate a significant speed reduction combined with very high appreciation by cyclists. However, a similar effect has to be found for cars too and MeBeSafe has therefore made use of another novel idea. By placing rows of lamps along both sides of a road, we can make them light up one after another in sequence. This pattern makes it seem as though the lights are moving towards you. As the surroundings appear to move faster, this naturally makes you more prone to slow down here too. But the cleverest thing about this system is that the lamps only turn on if your speed is inappropriate.
How to help tired drivers?
There are already coffee cup symbols in instrument panels that light up when the on-board system detects that the driver is tired. However, such symbols are usually not enough to prompt an actual reaction. MeBeSafe will therefore experiment with rewardingthe driver for taking a break. Would the tired driver be more prone to stop and rest if he or she got a free cup of coffee from the nearest café? Or a cinema ticket? Such an incentive scheme could educate the driver and thereby work in the long term.
Read more about the results from the road trials in the link below.
