Browsing by Author "Stoeltje, Gretchen"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
  • Thumbnail Image
    Crashworthiness Compatibility Investigation of Autonomous Vehicles with Current Passenger Vehicles
    Dobrovolny, Chiara Silvestri; Stoeltje, Gretchen; Zalani, Aniruddha (SAFE-D: Safety Through Disruption National University Transportation Center, 2021-11)
    Automated Vehicles have been one of the most sought-after concepts to make transportation more effective and safer. No-occupant vehicles with automated driving systems (ADS) make up one such class of vehicles. These are primarily intended for goods transportation services. This vehicle class presents a body structure different than that of a passenger vehicle. Yet, these no-occupant ADS-equipped vehicles are sharing the roads and could potentially be involved in crashes with passenger vehicles. Occupant safety may be compromised if vehicles are not compatible from a crashworthiness perspective. ADS-equipped vehicles should consider appropriate vehicle crashworthiness compatibility given the potential for interactions with vulnerable road users and other vehicle types. Investigation of the level of ADS-equipped vehicle crashworthiness compatibility with human-driven vehicles can lead to more appropriate vehicle designs, as well as more suitable and better passive protection systems for occupants in such crash scenarios. This research project considers finite element crash computer simulation investigation between ADS-equipped and passenger vehicles with the intent to provide a better understanding of the differences in crashworthy behavior of ADS-equipped vehicles.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Emerging Legal Issues for Transportation Researchers Using Passively Collected Data Sets
    Stoeltje, Gretchen; Moran, Maarit M.; Zmud, Johanna; Ramsey, Nijm; Stibbe, Jayson (SAFE-D: Safety Through Disruption National University Transportation Center, 2019-08)
    With the advent of new technologies to gather and process data, large data sets are being collected that are of interest to transportation researchers. However, legal and ethical questions around data ownership and protection in the context of emerging technologies, especially with regard to emerging automated and connected vehicle technologies, are still being formulated and addressed, but are not settled. This research compares the uses of primary and secondary, passively collected data sources to identify legal considerations affecting access to these data for transportation researchers. With privately sourced data becoming more prevalent, researchers are faced with additional duties and changing practices. This exploratory research aims to provide guidance to transportation researchers on the legal and ethical requirements for data protection.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Micromobility Regulation: Best Practices Review
    Stoeltje, Gretchen; Hansen, Todd; Hwang, William; Geislebrecht, Tina (Safe-D University Transportation Center, 2023-09)
    As rented and shared micromobility options, e-scooters are new and potentially transformative app-based modes that promise to alleviate first mile/last mile mobility issues, congestion, and more. Yet their safe deployment has not yet been systematically understood or standardized by users, cities, or operators. From 2017 to 2021, 267,700 people were treated for injuries in emergency departments and 129 were killed in micromobility product-related crashes. These devices are not yet regulated by a federal agency like the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration or the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and their use is not uniformly regulated at the municipal level. Some jurisdictions are imposing strict regulations across a region, regardless of density levels or urban design, while others have not imposed any rules at all. Without further understanding of what constitutes effective local regulation, the safe operation of these devices may not improve. This project explores what types of regulations municipalities and regions are imposing in an effort to address the safe deployment of these micromobility options.