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¡Vamos!: Observations of Pedestrian Interactions with Driverless Cars in Mexico

Published: 23 September 2018 Publication History

Abstract

How will pedestrians from different regions interact with an approaching autonomous vehicle? Understanding differences in pedestrian culture and responses can help inform autonomous cars how to behave appropriately in different regional contexts. We conducted a field study comparing the behavioral response of pedestrians between metropolitan Mexico City (N=113) and Colima, a smaller coastal city (N=81). We hid a driver in a car seat costume as a Wizard-of-Oz prototype to evoke pedestrian interaction behavior at a crosswalk or street. Pedestrian interactions were coded for crossing decision, crossing pathway, pacing, and observational behavior. Most distinctly, pedestrians in Mexico City kept their pace and more often crossed in front of the vehicle, while those in Colima stopped in front of the car more often.

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      cover image ACM Conferences
      AutomotiveUI '18: Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Automotive User Interfaces and Interactive Vehicular Applications
      September 2018
      374 pages
      ISBN:9781450359467
      DOI:10.1145/3239060
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      Published: 23 September 2018

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      Author Tags

      1. Ghostdriver
      2. Mexico
      3. Pedestrian interaction
      4. Regional differences
      5. Wizard of Oz

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      • (2025)Understanding cyclists’ perception of driverless vehicles through eye-tracking and interviewsTransportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and Behaviour10.1016/j.trf.2024.11.015109(399-420)Online publication date: Feb-2025
      • (2024)How do Automated Vehicles Influence Other Road Users and Sometimes Elicit Uncivil Behaviors?Proceedings of the 16th International Conference on Automotive User Interfaces and Interactive Vehicular Applications10.1145/3640792.3675715(374-383)Online publication date: 22-Sep-2024
      • (2024)Resilience engineering for highly automated driving, autonomous vehicles, and urban robotics: wizards and shepherds in hybrid societiesTheoretical Issues in Ergonomics Science10.1080/1463922X.2024.232806225:6(680-701)Online publication date: 11-Mar-2024
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      • (2022)Pedestrian-Vehicle Interaction in Shared Space: Insights for Autonomous VehiclesProceedings of the 14th International Conference on Automotive User Interfaces and Interactive Vehicular Applications10.1145/3543174.3546838(330-339)Online publication date: 17-Sep-2022
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