Engineering team develops autonomous alarm system for work zone vehicles

A Mizzou Engineering team has developed an innovative alert system that tells drivers when they’re in danger of colliding with a mobile work zone vehicle.

Engineers assess self-driving vehicles to reduce mobile work zone injuries

Using a self-driving truck to follow a manned vehicle has the potential to reduce worker injuries in mobile work zones, a Mizzou Engineering team has concluded. Henry Brown, a research engineer in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, is presenting the findings to the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT).

ZouSim uses simulated environment to study driver behavior

Erika Zhou is “driving” 50 in a 60-mile-per-hour zone. When she approaches road work, her speed drops to about 15 below the posted limit. A few days later, Stuart…

Mizzou Engineer studies motorist behavior around truck platoons

Professor Carlos Sun recently led a study investigating how motorists behave when faced with a truck platoon in work zones.

Mizzou Engineers study markings states use to direct drivers through work zones

Mizzou Engineers have wrapped up a comprehensive review of the materials states use to temporarily direct drivers through highway work zones and the various methods they rely on to remove those markings.

Lighting the way to safer driving

A team of MU Civil and Environmental Engineering researchers discovered as much when they studied response to different types of lights on what are called truck mounted attenuators (TMAs) in mobile work zones — for example, road striping zones. TMAs are attached to a construction vehicle and typically contain lights alerting drivers to upcoming work zones and additional items such as lane closures, upcoming lane mergers, etc.

Driver distractions in work zones can be costly

Distractions in the car are everywhere. Texting, taking a call, changing the radio, attending to passengers, picking up a dropped item — all of them can cause us to lose sight of the road for a few seconds. But mere seconds can be the difference between life and death.