Safety evaluation study of small pitch sections of tunnel connection interchange based on driving simulation

In this study, a traffic safety driving simulator was employed to develop a simulation scenario of a tunnel section connecting to an interchange, design and conduct driving simulation experiments, and perform safety comparisons and selection studies on the two scenarios, namely T-type and variant T-type. Five safety evaluation indexes, including location speed, running speed, acceleration, lane change position, and driving trajectory, were designed and selected for analysis of the feasibility of the two schemes from the perspective of driving behavior. The experimental results indicate that the T-type scene is more secure. Furthermore, the connection scheme of main lanes and ramps was proposed in conjunction with engineering examples, thereby providing theoretical support for the pre-design work of highway engineering and offering new ideas and approaches for the safety evaluation of similar interchanges.