Perception and Behavior Analysis of Bus Drivers Regarding Lane Width: A Case Study Conducted through Questionnaire Surveys on Seven Roads in Guangzhou City

Lane width is a critical factor influencing vehicle operations. To maintain orderly traffic flow on urban roads while maximizing road space utilization, this study investigates the psychological perceptions and behavioral choices of Guangzhou city bus drivers while running on city roads with varying widths. Initially, considering the complex urban traffic environment and traffic flow characteristics, a questionnaire survey was designed to investigate the driving perceptions and behavioral choices of bus drivers. Subsequently, 626 valid data sets were extracted from the survey results to assess the impact of lane width on drivers’ perception of safety, comfort, and driving behavior. Furthermore, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was employed to determine the weights of individual influencing factors, quantifying the extent to which lane width affects bus drivers’ perception and behavior, and finally, establishing an AHP-TOPSIS comprehensive evaluation model combined with the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to an Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) to assess each road section and different lane width segments comprehensively. The analysis revealed that Narrowing Lane width primarily affects bus drivers’ perception of safety. Drivers’ perceptions are significantly influenced by lane width variations in more complex environments; as driving maneuvers become more complex, drivers’ behaviors are more noticeably affected by changes in lane width; within the lane width range of 2.8–3.25 m, the lane widths are narrower, the comprehensive evaluation scores from bus drivers are high. This study provides crucial insights for the establishment of local standards for urban lane width.