Assessing the risky riding behavior and the effect of entrance behavior of right-turning motorcyclists on critical gap at T-junctions

Abstract

T-junctions have a high risk of traffic crashes, and motorcyclists tend to behave differently at different types of junctions. This study aims to determine the motorcyclists’ risky riding behavior and to investigate the effect of risky right-turning behavior of motorcyclists on the critical gap at three types of T-junctions: type A (conventional T-junction), type B (unconventional T-junction with a short exit lane for right-turning minor road vehicles) and type C (unconventional T-junction with short exit lane for through major road vehicles). Eight risky riding behaviors identified are “riding a motorcycle without wearing a helmet”, “no signal when turning”, “not switching on the headlight during daytime”, “riding on the opposite or wrong side of the road”, “crossing a junction without fully stopping”, “riding or performing a turn that is not according to the right of rule”, “stop after the stop line” and “playing mobile phone”. Type A junction has the highest percentage of motorcyclists with risky riding behavior. Using Raff's method, the critical gap for type A was 9.20 s, 7.00 s for type B, and 7.20 s for type C. The follow-up times for type A, B, and C T-junctions were 3.32, 2.50, and 2.63 seconds, respectively. Type B T-junction provides the best performance for a motorcycle to turn right from the minor road as it has the smallest critical gap and follow-up time. The exclusive short exit lane for minor-road right-turning vehicles on the major road effectively made drivers and motorcyclists feel safer and confident.