Use of rest areas by passenger car drivers on fast road network in Poland

Abstract

An integral part of a well-functioning network of national roads are Rest Areas (RA). They are crucial for road safety, provided that they are properly arranged and designed (not too long distance between them and enough number of parking spaces). They allow the drivers to safely stop and rest (use the toilet, use the telephone, eat a meal, sleep, etc.). However, in Europe, there is a shortage of parking spaces. In Poland, the situation is additionally complicated due to the lack of the current methodology for RA planning and design. There are also no indications for which traffic conditions a calculation should be made and measurements should be performed. The objectives of this study were to determine the use of rest areas by passenger car drivers, including in particular the determination of the percentage of vehicles entering the given RA and determination of the appropriate time interval for parking demand data collection. It was found that use of RA depend of its individual facilities and direction of movement (varied from 2.1% to 19.3% of the main-line traffic) and it’s the biggest on Friday from 12:00 to 18:00. This study was conducted on four RA located in central region of Poland.