Driver Behavior in Road Tunnels
Association with Driver Stress and Performance
Erika E. Miller and Linda Ng Boyle
Complex traffic environments can affect driver stress and driving per-
formance negatively. Driving through tunnels can be particularly stress-
ful, and these segments have been associated with higher crash rates.
However, the constraints of the natural environment (e.g., mountains,
waterways) often restrict the flexibility to make major modifications in
tunnels. The purpose of this study was to evaluate stress as drivers tra-
versed along an interstate route that included tunnel and nontunnel seg-
ments, as well as a 75-m transition period before the tunnels. Data from
50 drivers, including information from electrocardiogram recordings
such as heart rate and standard deviation of interbeat intervals (SDNN),
were collected. Driving performance measures included vehicle speed
and braking. Multivariate and univariate analyses of variance were used
to identify increases in drivers’ stress during several road segments: the
transition to a tunnel entrance, within a tunnel, and open road segments.
The largest variations in performance measures were observed in tunnels,
followed by the periods in transition segments. Evaluation of continuous
speed profiles along the route showed that drivers tended to decrease their
speed before entering a tunnel and increase speed just before exiting a
tunnel. The highest level of stress (denoted by the largest positive change
in heart rate and lowest variability in SDNN) was observed along the
transition segments, followed by the tunnel segments. Identifying situa-
tions in which drivers may experience higher levels of stress and the cor-
responding impact on driving performance is important for future road
and tunnel designs.
Driver–road–vehicle interactions can be influenced by several internal
and external factors that are compounded in complex traffic environ-
ments. Tunnels are one such complex environment shown to increase
driver stress and crash rates (1, 2). These enclosed environments can
decrease the driver’s attention toward important traffic information
as early as 150 m before a tunnel opening (3), and this decreased
attention has resulted in lane selection errors when entering the
tunnel (4).
Measures of physiology (e.g., cardiac and other muscle activity)
and decision-making tasks (e.g., working memory tests) have been
used to show that stress is associated with workloads. In a model of
driver stress by Matthews (5), exposure to stressful situations has
been surmised to induce driving-related behaviors, where stress is
based on the interaction of persons and environment (6). This situation
was demonstrated by Oz et al. in a survey study, in which cognitive
E. E. Miller, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and L. N. Boyle,
Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering and Department of Civil
and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington, Box 352650, Seattle,
WA 98195-2650. Corresponding author: L. N. Boyle, linda@uw.edu.
Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board,
No. 2518, Transportation Research Board, Washington, D.C., 2015, pp. 60–67.
DOI: 10.3141/2518-08
60
stress was shown to foster negative emotions (e.g., anger) or more
risky driving performance outcomes (7). Others have also noted the
association between workload and driving performance (8–10). For
example, Clapp and associates showed that stressful driving is asso-
ciated with anxiety-based performance deficits or hostile–aggressive
behaviors (8, 11). Driver stress is also associated with specific road-
way design and operations and could be influenced by the driver’s age,
gender, personality, impairment, and even stressful life events (8, 12).
In road tunnels, these feelings of anxiety can lead to reduced
vehicle speed just before the entrance and at the exit of tunnel open-
ings (1, 13). Akamatsu et al. noticed that speed changes occurred
50 m before a tunnel and again at the exit of a tunnel; this finding
suggests that drivers were hesitant or stressed when entering the
tunnel and relieved when exiting (1). Amundsen et al. found that
crash rates were four times higher 50 m before and after tunnel
openings compared with the middle segment of the tunnel (14).
Calvi et al. found that drivers in tunnels tend to move away from
the lane edge that is nearest the tunnel wall (15). This increase in
driver stress at the onset of the tunnel has also been associated with
decreased cognitive processing ability for critical information.
Some tunnel designs may reduce the anxiety associated with driv-
ing through a tunnel. Shimojo et al. suggested that the shape of a
tunnel opening can help alleviate the perceptions of tunnel nar-
rowness and meager tunnel lighting (16). The contrast in lighting
between the tunnel and the open road can also impact the driver’s
ability to perceive the inside of the tunnel and make the tunnel look
like a dark hole (1). Although tunnels are often constrained by the
limitations of the roadway and natural environment, possible solu-
tions to ease tunnel anxiety may be found by adjusting illumina-
tion and longitudinal ventilation, and increasing height and width
clearances (13).
Several methods have been commonly accepted for quantifying
driver workload. Coughlin et al. suggested several metrics in detect-
ing driver state, including quantifying driving behavior, vehicle per-
formance, environmental factors, and biometrics (17). Akamatsu et al.
used information from the accelerator pedal to examine fluctuations
in speed (1), and Tornros looked at deviations in lateral position as
indicators of driver response to tunneled versus nontunneled segments
(18). Ceci et al. compared physiological measures and considered
higher variability in the physiological responses to indicate increases
in cognitive workload in response to tunnel driving (4). Driver heart
rate and variability are often used as an indicator of driver workload
and have been shown to relate to driver performance (19, 20). Simi-
larly, changes in vehicle speed and braking have been observed when
drivers appear to be more stressed (1, 21).
The purpose of this study was to identify the relationship of tun-
nels and driver stress, and whether the stress may be correlated with
driver performance. The study used an on-road study that included
tunnels and nontunnel segments. Driver performance was quantified
Miller and Boyle
by using braking events, speed variability, and driver stress (heart
activity measured through an electrocardiogram, ECG).
Methodology
The analysis built on previous work by Miller and Boyle by further
investigating the variations in physiological and performance mea-
sures collected in an on-road study along various roads in the Puget
Sound region of Washington State (22).
Subjects
The study recruited 60 subjects, and 54 completed the entire experi-
mental drive. Six were removed because of screening complications.
Of the 54 who completed the entire drive, four drivers had miss-
ing data and were excluded from further analyses. In total, 50 par-
ticipants (26 male, 24 female) were examined. All the subjects had
Washington State driver licenses for at least 2 years and were from
one of three age groups: younger (25 years old and younger), middle
age (35 to 55 years), and older (65 years and older). Participants were
compensated $25 per hour for their time.
Equipment
The study was conducted in an instrumented 2002 Ford Taurus with
automatic transmission. The data recorded included vehicle kine-
matics, GPS location, and images from video recordings. Vehicle data
were collected at a rate of five samples per second (5 Hz) with the
program LabView, version 6.
Continuous ECG data were collected for each participant before
and during the drive with a Biopac MP150 and ECG 100 C amplifier.
The ECG readings were recorded with a Lead 2 configuration with
shielded leads for the positive and negative channels and unshielded
leads for the ground. ECG data were collected at a sampling rate of
1,000 Hz with the program AcqKnowledge, version 4.2. The vehicle
and ECG data were recorded with the same data acquisition com-
puter and synchronized with the computer’s timestamp. Reduction
on the raw ECG data was done with the same program as acquisition,
AcqKnowledge (version 4.2). To ensure that all the data were accu-
rately processed, a tachogram of each data set was used to highlight
artifacts, and subsequent manual reduction was performed to adjust
peaks and eliminate artifacts.
Procedure
Participants met the researcher at the University of Washington in
Seattle, Washington, at which point the participants were provided
Open Road 1 Open Road 2
Tunnel A
Seattle
FIGURE 1   Map of road segments in study. (Source: modified from Google
Maps.)
61
the consent form and familiarized with the study route and instru-
mented vehicle. Participants were connected to the ECG device right
before the drive began. A 3-min resting heart rate was recorded as a
baseline. The original drive began and ended at the university. The
route consisted of a 25-mi (40-km) circular route. Half the partici-
pants completed the drive in the clockwise direction, while the other
half completed it in the counterclockwise direction. Participants were
randomly assigned to a direction of travel. For the clockwise direc-
tion, the route began with State Route 520 (eastbound), to rural roads
in Bellevue, Washington (southeast), to Interstate 405 (I-405) (south),
to I-90 (west), and finally on I-5 (north). The counterclockwise direc-
tion encountered the same roads, but in reverse order. Immediately
following the completion of the drive, the participants were given a
four-page questionnaire that solicited data on their driving behaviors,
study drive experience, and demographics. The study took about 2 h
for each participant to complete.
All drives were conducted during July through September 2012
between 10:30 and 14:30. This permitted each driver to experience
similar conditions of daylight, clear weather, and nonpeak traffic.
Furthermore, each driver was asked to obey the posted speed limit
and keep the radio turned off.
Road Segment
The analyses in this paper focus on the I-90 segment of the study,
which was located from Mile Post (MP) 2 to MP 10 in Washington
State. Previous work suggested that differences within this segment
might differ from the other road segments for heart rate variability
(22). Of particular interest is that this corridor also encompassed
road segments with tunnels. Therefore, this portion of the data was
extracted for further analysis. Approximately 12 km of I-90 were
included in the drive, which were partitioned into seven segments
based on location; for the westbound (clockwise) approach, the route
was segmented into open road (4.9 km), transition (75 m), tunnel
(0.8 km), open road (2.8 km), transition (75 m), tunnel (1 km), and
open road (1.4 km). The eastbound (counterclockwise) drive included
the same segments in reverse order.
Data from the Washington State Department of Transportation
showed that all open road lanes on this section, including the transition
segments, were 12 ft wide, while the lanes in the tunnels were 11 ft wide
(Washington State Department of Transportation, personal communi-
cation, 2014). The shoulder widths ranged from 6 to 10 ft along the
open road and transition segments, and 1 to 4 ft widths in the tunnels.
This section of I-90 connects the city of Seattle to Bellevue (Fig-
ure 1). There are minimal grade changes and only slight horizontal
curves. Although this interstate section has a variable speed zone, the
posted speed limit for all drivers is 60 mph. The highway includes
three lanes in each direction and an additional two-lane reversible
expressway. Drivers were advised not to take the express lanes during
the study.
Open Road 3
Tunnel B
Bellevue
62
I-90 Tunnels
I-90 has two tunnels (labeled A and B) for each direction of travel
(Figure 2). The two tunnels have similar lane configurations and ver-
tical and horizontal alignments. However, Tunnel A (Figure 2) has
narrower lanes and tighter shoulders for the eastbound direction of
travel, as it splits into two tunnels; the left tunnel encompasses two
lanes and the right tunnel has only one lane.
Independent Variables
All participants were randomly assigned to a designated direction
of travel, but the roadway segments were all the same. That is, par-
ticipants were placed in either the eastbound or westbound direction
of travel to minimize any variations that may exist between the two
travel directions. The seven road segments were categorized as: Open
Roads 1, 2, and 3; Tunnels A and B; and Transitions A and B (Fig-
ure 1). Tunnel A is the west most tunnel (nearer Seattle) and Tunnel B
is closest to the east side (Bellevue). The transition segment was
defined as the 75 m of open road before the entrance of the tunnel.
This segment was included in the analyses since studies have indi-
cated that increased stress and performance errors can occur in the
transition segment (3, 14). The geometrics were comparable between
the two directions. Driver age groups [younger (25 years or younger),
middle aged (35 to 55 years old), and older (65 years old or older)],
(a)
(c)
FIGURE 2   Views of Tunnel A (a) eastbound and (b) westbound, and Tunnel B (c) eastbound and (d) westbound. (Source: Google Street View.)
Transportation Research Record 2518
gender, and all corresponding interaction terms were also considered
in the model.
Dependent Variables
The dependent variables comprised vehicle kinematics and physio­
logical measurements. The vehicle kinematics included means and
standard deviations of speed and deceleration calculated for each
participant at each of the seven road segments. Deceleration was
measured as a change in the voltage of the brake pedal load cell or
foot pedal application. The change could range from zero (for no
change) to 1.5 (hard braking event) and was recorded at 5 Hz. Speed
was defined by the rate at which the vehicle was traveling in miles
per hour and was also recorded at 5 Hz.
Physiological measures were extracted from the ECG data and
included heart rate and the standard deviation of interbeat intervals
(SDNN). Heart rate was defined as the number of R-wave peaks over
a given interval measured in beats per minute (bpm) and standard-
ized for comparison across participants by subtracting each partici-
pant’s mean resting heart rate from their continuous ECG recordings.
As a result, a positive value for heart rate would be associated with
increased stress.
Heart rate variability was also accounted for by the SDNN; lower
values of SDNN are associated with increasing stress (23). Each
participant’s SDNN was standardized similarly to his or her heart rate
(b)
(d)
Miller and Boyle 63

to compare across participants; the participants’ resting SDNN was sion 2.15.2). Pairwise comparison with Tukey’s honest significance
subtracted from their SDNN along each segment. difference (HSD) test was conducted to examine the differences in
the significant effects.

Data Analysis
A Pearson correlation analysis showed that the standard deviation
(SD) of speed and the SD of deceleration were correlated (r = .27,
p < .001). Therefore, a 7 (road segment) × 2 (direction) × 2 (gender)
× 3 (age group) multivariate analysis of variance (ANOVA) was
performed to examine these two dependent measures. A univari-
ate ANOVA was conducted for SDNN, as this was not correlated
with the other driver performance measures. The same independent
variables were examined.
A second univariate ANOVA was also performed on mean speeds;
however, this analysis focused on the two tunnels only, rather than all
seven segments. For this analysis, a 2 (Tunnels A and B) × 2 (direc-
tion) × 2 (gender) × 3 (age group) ANOVA was performed with the
intent to examine performance differences with the two tunnels.
All the analyses used the linear mixed effects model function
in the nlme package of the statistical software program R (ver-
Results
Summary Statistics
The study included 19 younger (9 male, 10 female), 19 middle-aged
(9 male, 10 female), and 12 older (8 male, 4 female) drivers. The age
distributions by direction of travel were: younger (10 east, 9 west),
middle (10 east, 9 west), and older (7 east, 5 west). The self-reported
annual driving distance ranged from 1,600 to 70,000 km, with a mean
of 16,400 km per year.
The speeding profiles in each travel direction were examined
graphically (Figure 3a in the eastbound direction and Figure 3b in
the westbound direction). The data used for the plots were based
on the mean speeds of each driver aggregated to 15-m bins. The
posted speed limit of 60 mph is represented as a horizontal dashed
line and the transition periods as a vertical dashed line. There was

Speed (km/h)
Speed (mph)

Mean
SD
Direction of travel

Seattle Bellevue
Distance Driven
(a)
Speed (km/h)
Speed (mph)

Mean
SD
Direction of travel

Seattle Bellevue
Distance Driven
(b)

FIGURE 3   Mean speed profiles along I-90: (a) eastbound, Seattle (Open Road 1) to Bellevue (Open
Road 3), and (b) westbound, Bellevue (Open Road 3) to Seattle (Open Road 1) (SD 5 standard deviation).
64 Transportation Research Record 2518

no observed car following in the study, given that all the drives took TABLE 2   Summary Statistics for SDNN by Road Segments
place during nonpeak hours and under free-flow traffic conditions
specifically to minimize any potential confounding effects. SDNN (ms), by Direction and Gender
For both directions of travel, three of the four tunnel segments Eastbound Westbound
(Tunnel A eastbound, Tunnels B and A westbound) had notably lower Road
speeds than the adjacent open road segments. The traveling speeds Segment Age Group Male Female Male Female
within these three tunnel segments were notably lower than the posted
speed limit. Furthermore, the lowest observable speed occurred in Open road Younger −0.05 −0.11 −0.02 −0.02
Middle aged −0.01 −0.13 −0.01 −0.01
the tunnels for both directions. For the four tunnel segments, relative Older −0.01 0.00 0.03 0.00
spikes in speed were observed at tunnel openings; there were notice- Transition Younger −0.06 −0.13 −0.05 −0.04
able drops in speed before each tunnel and increases in speed near the Middle aged −0.01 −0.16 −0.02 −0.02
tunnel exits. Eastbound Tunnel A is considerably narrower. The driver Older −0.02 −0.02 0.02 0.00
response to this tighter enclosure is reflected where eastbound Tunnel Tunnel Younger −0.05 −0.11 −0.01 −0.02
A has a lower mean speed compared with the rest of the route. These Middle aged −0.03 −0.13 −0.01 −0.01
Older −0.01 0.00 0.03 0.00
differences in speed are further analyzed in the section on inferential
statistics.
Tables 1, 2, and 3 show the summary statistics for open road, tran-
sition, and tunnel, by age, gender, and travel direction, for heart rate, Furthermore, SD speed and SD braking within each tunnel was
SDNN, and speed, respectively. The standardized heart rate revealed greater than the SD within the respective transition segment (both
that there was less variability in the tunnels in the eastbound direc- significant at p < .001).
tion of travel (Figure 4). Table 1 shows that all middle-aged drivers Significant differences in age groups were also observed [F(2, 43)
and older females in the westbound direction experienced the largest = 7.152, p = .002]. More specifically, the SDs of the younger drivers
(positive) incremental changes in heart rate compared with the rest- were greater than those of the middle-aged drivers, and this was
ing state. This was most prominent through the transition segments. significant at p = .004. No other significant outcomes were observed:
The SDNN shows that the highest workloads for all age and gender gender [F(1, 43) = 0.260, p = .613], interaction of gender and age
groups were experienced in the transition segments (Figure 5). The [F(2, 43) = 1.373, p = .264], and direction [F(1, 43) = 2.218, p = .144].
lowest speeds were observed through the tunnel segments (Table 3).
When aggregated to level of direction of travel (Figure 6), variations
in mean speeds were highest in the transitions and tunnels. Entire Segment: SDNN

Inferential Statistics
Entire Segment: Standard Deviation
in Speed and Deceleration
Road segment had a significant impact on speed and braking
[F(6, 288) = 98.923, p < .0001] as did the interaction of road seg-
ment and travel direction [F(6, 288) = 4.045, p = .001]. Both tran-
sition segments (A and B) had higher SD speed and braking than
the respective open-road segment immediately before ( p < .001).
The results of this test showed that road segment was significant with
F(6, 288) = 5.587, p < .001. A trend toward significance was identi-
fied for direction with F(1, 43) = 3.528, p = .067 and gender with
F(1, 43) = 3.236, p = .079. However, age, interaction of age and gen-
der, and interaction of road segment and direction were not significant
on SDNN. A Tukey HSD test on this model revealed a trend that
females experienced more stress than males (p = .09). The SDNN
values were lower in the transition segment before Tunnel B com-
pared with the proceeding open road (p < .01) and compared with
being in Tunnel B (p = .10), corresponding to higher stress in the tran-
sition segment. Furthermore, this transition into Tunnel B had higher

TABLE 1   Summary Statistics for Mean Standardized Heart Rate

by Road Segments TABLE 3   Summary Statistics for Mean Speed by Road Segments

Heart Rate (bpm), by Direction Mean Speed (mph), by Direction

and Gender and Gender

Eastbound Westbound Eastbound Westbound

Road Road
Segment Age Group Male Female Male Female Segment Age Group Male Female Male Female

Open road Younger −3.6 4.2 2.7 1.6 Open road Younger 59.8 54.4 58.2 56.3
Middle aged 3.3 1.4 12.3 6.4 Middle aged 59.5 56.5 56.3 56.3
Older 2.4 −3.8 −1.3 9.7 Older 57.1 52.8 55.7 52.1
Transition Younger −8.5 4.1 0.9 5.5 Transition Younger 56.7 57.3 57.0 54.6
Middle aged 6.5 3.3 14.1 11.2 Middle aged 59.9 56.2 54.5 56.0
Older 1.5 −6.5 −3.6 10.6 Older 57.7 56.3 55.7 51.6
Tunnel Younger 2.7 −1.2 1.8 −2.9 Tunnel Younger 55.8 52.7 56.8 53.6
Middle aged 1.7 0.9 4.9 0.7 Middle aged 58.4 53.0 54.8 54.8
Older 1.5 1.0 1.9 5.3 Older 56.0 53.0 55.0 49.1
Miller and Boyle 65

Open road Transition Tunnel

Standardized Heart Rate (bpm)

Seattle Bellevue Seattle Bellevue

Segment Segment

FIGURE 4   Standardized heart rate by travel direction.

Open road Transition Tunnel

Standardized SDNN (ms)

Seattle Bellevue Seattle Bellevue

Segment Segment

FIGURE 5   Standardized SDNN by travel direction.

Open road Transition Tunnel

Mean Speed (km/h)
Mean Speed (mph)

Seattle Bellevue Seattle Bellevue

Segment Segment

FIGURE 6   Mean speed by travel direction.

66
Mean Speed (km/h)
Mean Speed (mph)
FIGURE 7   Interaction plot of tunnel and direction on
mean speed.
observed stress than the segment following Tunnel B ( p < .01). How-
ever, for α = .05, the Tukey contrasts for SDNN specifically evaluating
the segments around Tunnel A did not expose significant differences.
The aggregation of westbound and eastbound in this Tukey test may
explain this ambiguity of Tunnel A, as the tunnel design differs between
directions.
Tunnel A and Tunnel B: Mean Speed
The mean speeds were further examined between tunnels and
directions because differences were observed in this measure in Fig­
ure 3. The results suggest that there was a significant difference
between the two tunnels [F(1, 48) = 53.730, p < .0001]. The inter­
action of tunnel and direction was also significant [F(1, 48) = 4.372,
p = .042]. The Tukey HSD test showed that Tunnel A had lower mean
speeds than Tunnel B ( p < .001) and that speeds for eastbound were
significantly slower than westbound ( p < .01). There was also a differ-
ence in gender [F(1, 43) = 7.452, p < .009]; males had faster observed
speeds. The interaction of age and gender was not significant.
The interaction plot of mean speed between these two tunnels
for each direction of travel is provided in Figure 7. This plot further
clarifies the divergence in vehicle speeds between the different tun-
nel designs. The change in mean speeds between Tunnels A and B
is greatest for the eastbound drivers, as portrayed by the slope of the
dotted line. Conversely, the gap in observed mean speeds between
Tunnels A and B for the westbound drivers is smaller (slope of the
solid line). However, in both cases (direction of travel), speeds are
lowest in Tunnel A and higher in Tunnel B (line end points).
Discussion of Results
The objective of this study was to examine driver performance and
stress within tunnels. A 12-km section of I-90 between Seattle and
Bellevue, Washington, was used for the study. This section includes
two tunnels in each direction and was partitioned into seven unique
segments of open roads, tunnels, and transitions to the tunnels. Vehi-
cle kinematics data and physiological data (heart rate and SDNN)
were used to examine performance and stress.
Lower traveling speeds were observed through the tunnel segments
compared with the nontunnel segments. There were also notable drops
in speeds just before entering the tunnel and an increase on exiting
the tunnel, which suggests that drivers were uncomfortable with the
tunnel segments and this is supported by past research (1, 13).
Transportation Research Record 2518
The lowest speeds were observed in Tunnel A in the eastbound
direction of travel, which is the tunnel closest to Seattle. This tunnel
was the first the participant observed if the participant was traveling
eastbound. This difference in vehicle control could be associated
with the difference in configuration between travel directions. Spe-
cifically, eastbound Tunnel A split into two tunnels with narrower
shoulders (1 to 2 ft wide) and lanes (11 ft wide), whereas Tunnel A
in the westbound direction and Tunnel B in both directions had lanes
that were 11 ft wide, but shoulders that were 2 to 4 ft wide.
In general, the tunnel lanes were narrower than the open and transi-
tion segments (width 11 ft compared with 12 ft) and had less shoulder
width (1 to 4 ft compared with 6 to 10 ft in the open segments). These
dimensional differences may impact workload and vehicle control.
Differences were observed in the study participants’ heart rate and
SDNN between the tunnel and nontunnel segments. Stress was high-
est in the transition segments before tunnel entrances. Furthermore,
stress was higher within a tunnel compared with the open road, as
verified by SDNN. Variations for each driver’s speed and braking
were greatest within tunnels and also elevated during the transition
segments. The differences in gender and age noted in this study have
also been observed in past studies that have shown age and gender
differences in stress and vehicle control (24, 25). In the current study,
females had significantly higher stress compared with males across
the entire study drive, which was confirmed on the basis of their lower
values of SDNN. Younger drivers had the largest variations in speed,
as was observed by comparing participant-level standard deviations
of vehicle speed.
In summary, the transition segments, which have the same wide
lanes and shoulders as the open segments, still presented workload
issues. Similar findings have been noted in previous studies (1, 3,
14). This finding suggests that driver perceptions of tunnels at the
approach can still have an impact on driver stress and attention.
For design purposes, the conspicuity of relevant information and
the visual cues that need to be provided before entering tunnels are
important considerations within the transition segment.
Some studies have suggested that modifying the face of a tunnel
(16) or the entrance and exit lighting (13) could be designed to allevi-
ate such stress. These suggestions would need to be examined further
for this particular segment, as differences may exist across different
geographical regions and driver populations. Further, the road sec-
tion being examined was relatively flat with minimal vertical grade
changes. Dramatic changes in the vertical alignment may also increase
the level of stress that drivers experience as they approach a tunnel.
An examination of historical crash records along this corridor could
also be useful for further understanding the safety implications across
each segment.
This study evaluated the impact of tunnels on driver stress, which
was measured with physiological and driver performance measures.
Survey data were also collected to assess drivers’ perceptions of
stress, but the outcomes did not provide additional insights on behav-
ior in the tunnel, as this specific segment was not part of the original
study hypothesis. However, this additional information could have
been useful to compare actual performance with perceptions. The
data clearly suggest that there are driver differences and that the
approach to a tunnel could be as stressful as the tunnel itself. Varia-
tions in tunnel design appear to be associated with higher stress lev-
els, specifically the horizontal clearances. Although environmental
constraints often impact the design of tunneled roadways, it is impor-
tant to understand how these designs will affect drivers. Engineers
should consider the internal design of the tunnels as well as the exter-
nal construction and surrounding areas. The potential to reduce crash
Miller and Boyle
risk can be achievable by designing tunnels with consideration of the
drivers, their stress levels, and the implications of stress for safety.
Acknowledgments
This project was supported by funds provided to the second author
from the University of Washington. The authors acknowledge the
thoughtful comments of three anonymous reviewers.
References
  1. Akamatsu, M., N. Imachou, Y. Sasaki, H. Ushiro-Oka, T. Hamanaka,
Y. Sakauchi, and M. Onuki. Simulator Study on Driver’s Behavior While
Driving Through a Tunnel in a Rolling Area. Proc., Driving Simulator
Conference—North America, Dearborn, Mich., National Advanced
Driving Simulator, University of Iowa, Iowa City, 2003.
  2. Lemke, K. Road Safety in Tunnels. In Transportation Research Record:
Journal of the Transportation Research Board, No. 1740, TRB, National
Research Council, Washington, D.C., 2000, pp. 170–174.
 3. Verwey, W. B. Effects of Tunnel Entrances on Driver’s Physiological
Condition and Performance. Report TM 1995 C-19. Human Factors
Research Institute, Netherlands Organization for Applied Research,
Soesterberg, Netherlands, 1995.
  4. Ceci, R., L. Hogman, and C. Patten. Measures of Driver Behavior
and Cognitive Workload in a Driving Simulator and in Real Traffic
Environment—Experiences from Two Experimental Studies in Sweden.
Proc., 1st International Driving Symposium on Human Factors in Driver
Assessment, Training and Vehicle Design, Aspen, Colo., University of
Iowa, Iowa City, 2001.
  5. Matthews, G. Towards a Transactional Ergonomics for Driver Stress and
Fatigue. Theoretical Issues in Ergonomics Science, Vol. 3, No. 2, 2002,
pp. 195–211.
  6. Lazarus, R. S. Stress and Emotion: A New Synthesis. Springer, New York,
1999.
  7. Oz, B., T. Ozkan, and T. Lajunen. Professional and Non-Professional
Drivers’ Stress Reactions and Risky Driving. Transportation Research
Part F, Vol. 13, 2010, pp. 32–40.
  8. Clapp, J. D., S. A. Olsen, S. Danoff-Burg, J. H. Hagewood, E. J. Hickling,
V. S. Hwang, and J. G. Beck. Factors Contributing to Anxious Driving
Behavior: The Role of Stress History and Accident Severity. Journal of
Anxiety Disorders, Vol. 25, 2011a, pp. 592–598.
  9. Taylor, J., F. P. Deane, and J. Podd. Driving Fear and Driving Skills:
Comparison Between Fearful and Control Samples Using Standardized
On-Road Assessment. Behaviour Research and Therapy, Vol. 45, 2007,
pp. 805–818.
10. Matthews, G., L. Dorn, T. W. Hoyes, D. R. Davies, A. I. Glendon, and
R. G. Taylor. Driver Stress and Performance on a Driving Simulator.
Human Factors, Vol. 40, 1998, pp. 136–149.
11. Clapp, J. D., S. A . Olsen, J. G. Beck, S. A . Palyo, D. M. Grant,
B. Gudmundsdottir, and L. Marques. The Driving Behavior Survey:
67
Scale Construction and Validation. Journal of Anxiety Disorders,
Vol. 25, No. 1, 2011b, pp. 96–105.
12. Ba, Y., and W. Zhang. An Empirical Approach for Driver-Driver Inter-
action Study: Attributes, Influence Factors and Framework. In Advances
in Usability Evaluation Part II (F. Rebelo and M. M. Soares, eds.). CRC
Press, Boca Raton, Fla., 2013, pp. 404–413.
13. Amundsen, F. H. Studies of Driver Behaviour in Norwegian Road Tun-
nels. Tunneling and Underground Space Technology, Vol. 9, No. 1, 1994,
pp. 9–17.
14. Amundsen, F. H., P. O. Roald, A. Engebretsen, and A. Ragnoy. Traffic
Accidents in Norwegian Subsea Tunnels. Publication 98. Directorate of
Public Roads, Norwegian Public Roads Administration, Oslo, Norway,
2005.
15. Calvi, A., M. R. De Blasiis, and C. Guattari. An Empirical Study of the
Effects of Road Tunnel on Driving Performance. Procedia Social and
Behavioral Sciences, Vol. 53, 2012, pp. 1100–1110.
16. Shimojo, A., H. Takagi, and H. Onuma. A Simulation Study of Driving
Performance in Long Tunnel. Proc., IEEE 6th International Conference
of Vehicle Navigation and Information Systems, Seattle, Wash., IEEE,
New York, 1995, pp. 96–103.
17. Coughlin, J. F., B. Reimer, and B. Mehler. Monitoring, Managing, and
Motivating Driver Safety and Well-Being. IEEE Pervasive Computing,
Vol. 10, No. 3, 2011, pp. 14–21.
18. Tornros, J. Driving Behavior in a Real and a Simulated Road Tunnel—
A Validation Study. Accident Analysis and Prevention, Vol. 30, No. 4,
1998, pp. 497–503.
19. Liu, Y. C., and M. H. Wen. Comparison of Head-Up Display (HUD)
vs. Head-Down Display (HDD): Driving Performance of Commercial
Vehicle Operators in Taiwan. International Journal of Human-Computer
Studies, Vol. 61, No. 5, 2004, pp. 679–697.
20. Healey, J., and R. Picard. Detecting Stress During Real-World Driving
Tasks Using Physiological Sensors. IEEE Transactions on Intelligent
Transportation Systems, Vol. 6, No. 2, 2005, pp. 156–166.
21. Apparies, R., T. Riniolo, and S. Porges. A Psychophysical Investigation
of the Effects of Driving Longer-Combination Vehicles. Ergonomics,
Vol. 41, No. 5, 1998, pp. 581–592.
22. Miller, E. E., and L. N. Boyle. Variations in Road Conditions on Driver
Stress: Insights from an On-Road Study. Proceedings of the Human
Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting, Vol. 57, No. 1, 2013,
pp. 1864–1868.
23. Lee, H., J. Kim, Y. Kim, J. Baek, M. Ryu, and K. Park. The Relationship
Between HRV Parameters and Stressful Driving Situation in the Real
Road. Proc., 6th International Special Topic Conference on Information
Technology Applications in Biomedicine, Tokyo, Japan, IEEE, New York,
2007, pp. 198–200.
24. Matthews, G., A. Tsuda, G. Xin, and Y. Ozeki. Individual Differences in
Driver Stress Vulnerability in a Japanese Sample. Ergonomics, Vol. 42,
No. 3, 1999, pp. 401–415.
25. Westerman, S. J., and D. Haigney. Individual Differences in Driver
Stress, Error, and Violation. Personality and Individual Differences,
Vol. 29, No. 5, 2000, pp. 981–998.
The Standing Committee on Vehicle User Characteristics peer-reviewed this
paper.