Wait or cross? Understanding the influence of behavioral tendency, trust, and risk perception on pedestrian gap-acceptance of automated truck platoons

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Ye, Yun, Che, Yuan, Liang, Haoyang, Zhang, Yingheng, Xu, Pengpeng
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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_version_ 1866917187246096384
author Ye, Yun
Che, Yuan
Liang, Haoyang
Zhang, Yingheng
Xu, Pengpeng
author_facet Ye, Yun
Che, Yuan
Liang, Haoyang
Zhang, Yingheng
Xu, Pengpeng
contents Although automated trucks have the potential to improve freight efficiency, reduce costs, and address driver shortages, organizing two or more trucks in a convoy has raised considerable concerns for pedestrian safety. This study conducted a controlled experiment to examine the influence of behavioral tendency, trust, and risk perception on pedestrian intention to cross in front of an automated truck platoon. A total of 603 subjects participated in the virtual reality video-based questionnaire survey. By fusing the merits of structural equation modeling and artificial neural networks, a two-stage, hybrid model was developed to examine complex relationships between latent variables and gap-acceptance behaviors. Our results indicated that subjects watched an average of five vehicle gaps before starting crossing and the average time gap accepted was about 5.35 seconds. Risk perception not only played the most dominant role in shaping pedestrian crossing decisions, but also served as the strong bone, mediating the effects of behavioral tendency and trust on gap-acceptance. Participants who frequently violated traffic rules were more likely to accept a smaller time gap, while those who showed positive behaviors to other road users tended to wait for a larger time gap. Participants who often committed errors, showed aggressive behaviors, and held greater trust in the safety of automated trucks generally reported a lower level of risk for road-crossing in front of automated truck platoons. Built on these findings, a range of tailored countermeasures were proposed to ensure safer and smother interactions between pedestrians and automated truck platoons.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2601_03225
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Wait or cross? Understanding the influence of behavioral tendency, trust, and risk perception on pedestrian gap-acceptance of automated truck platoons
Ye, Yun
Che, Yuan
Liang, Haoyang
Zhang, Yingheng
Xu, Pengpeng
Human-Computer Interaction
Although automated trucks have the potential to improve freight efficiency, reduce costs, and address driver shortages, organizing two or more trucks in a convoy has raised considerable concerns for pedestrian safety. This study conducted a controlled experiment to examine the influence of behavioral tendency, trust, and risk perception on pedestrian intention to cross in front of an automated truck platoon. A total of 603 subjects participated in the virtual reality video-based questionnaire survey. By fusing the merits of structural equation modeling and artificial neural networks, a two-stage, hybrid model was developed to examine complex relationships between latent variables and gap-acceptance behaviors. Our results indicated that subjects watched an average of five vehicle gaps before starting crossing and the average time gap accepted was about 5.35 seconds. Risk perception not only played the most dominant role in shaping pedestrian crossing decisions, but also served as the strong bone, mediating the effects of behavioral tendency and trust on gap-acceptance. Participants who frequently violated traffic rules were more likely to accept a smaller time gap, while those who showed positive behaviors to other road users tended to wait for a larger time gap. Participants who often committed errors, showed aggressive behaviors, and held greater trust in the safety of automated trucks generally reported a lower level of risk for road-crossing in front of automated truck platoons. Built on these findings, a range of tailored countermeasures were proposed to ensure safer and smother interactions between pedestrians and automated truck platoons.
title Wait or cross? Understanding the influence of behavioral tendency, trust, and risk perception on pedestrian gap-acceptance of automated truck platoons
topic Human-Computer Interaction
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.03225