Effects of driving style on passengers comfort : A research paper about the influence of the bus driver´s driving style on public transport users

Abstract: The comfort of the public transport user is of vital importance to guarantee a pleasant service. The driver's style on coaches and buses is a significant factor that influences the comfort of the users. The driver of a vehicle is clearly implicated in the production of motion sickness since it is the driver who regulates the accelerations than cause passenger sickness (Mark Turner & Michael J. Griffin, 1999). Therefore it is necessary to explain the relationship between passenger comfort and driver behaviour. The driver’s driving style has been described by recording the accelerations (X-Y-Z directions) of a bus with an accelerometer. This data has been processed afterwards to obtain four indicators that describe the driving style of the driver. The four indicators are: 1) Longitudinal acceleration and braking levels, 2) Longitudinal jerks, 3) Lateral cornering acceleration levels, and 4) uneven speed, so-called "Pump driving". Comfort ratings from the passengers has been collected on board different buses from the Södertälje and Kallhäll areas where passengers were asked to grade their experience during their current journey. This information has been analysed together with the indicators. The final result is an algorithm that provides a comfort rating by analysing the acceleration of a bus.