Effects of Large Vehicles
By: Chris Sweryda
Dual signing usually involves placing a second sign on the left side/median of a one-wayor divided road to supplement the primary sign placed on the right. This practice greatlyimproves sign visibility and aids drivers in the median lane who may have their sightlinesobstructed by large vehicles in the curb lane. Almost all signs found in the MUTCD(traffic manual used by City of Winnipeg) are dual signed except for speed limits.Winnipeg is the only major city in western Canada that does not dual sign speed limitsigns including speed reductions.In Winnipeg, there are ninety-nine speed reductions; fifty-eight of which are found ondivided roads. Of these fifty-eight, fifty-four are on truck routes. Thus large trucks willbe found on these truck routes. Due to the rule of "slower traffic keep right", larger(slower) vehicles are usually found in the curb lane while smaller faster moving vehiclesare in the left/median lane(s).
Picture shows a speed reduction (70-50km/h) sign posted on the right only andcurve signs dual signed on Kenaston SBsouth of Academy.A second picture of the same locationshows a truck blocking a car from seeingthe speed sign. The median curve sign isstill visible.
Most people underestimate the extent large vehicles obstruct sightlines. Some say thatsince there's both a speed reduction ahead and a speed sign, there's no way a driver canhave their view of both signs blocked. This demonstration will show the significanteffects trucks have on other motorists' ability to see the signs.Using maximum truck measurements from the Highway Traffic Act of Manitoba andsightline angles & measurements from the MUTCD, it was concluded that a large 25.00m semi-truck can obstruct sightlines for as much as 32.14 m. This is due to the fact that atruck has width as well as length and that the other driver's sightline is on an angle. Someargue that they can see more than 40 degrees, but this is the value in the MUTCDaccepted for engineering.At first appearance, the blind spot wouldn't appear that large, but this blind spot is rollingrather than stationary such as a billboard. Because the truck is in motion, the blind spotwill always be longer dependent on the speeds of the vehicles.
Not To Scale:
Diagram shows that due to a truck having width and length, the sightline obstruction islonger than the actual length of the truck.
Car Passing Truck - Diagram
Diagrams demonstrate how a truck is a constantly moving blind spot that will always besignificantly longer than the length of the truck.
Effects of Large Vehicles
An analysis of how large vehicles can block the view of speed limit signing.
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