Ecodriving acceptance: An experimental study on anticipation behavior of truck drivers

In this paper, it is researched to what extend truck drivers are willing to improve their anticipation behavior. For the purpose of this research, anticipation behavior is characterized by anticipation distance: the distance to a stopping point (e.g. roundabout), at which the accelerator pedal is released. A larger anticipation distance yields a lower fuel consumption. The goal of this research was to reveal the potential anticipation improvement without exceeding driver's acceptance. Therefore, the driver's natural anticipation distance, and the acceptance of prescribed distance was measured. The effects of this improved behavior, in terms of saved fuel and additional trip time, are analyzed. The analysis suggested that improved anticipation behavior can save up to 98 grams of fuel per deceleration event. Finally, natural driving behavior on public roads was measured as a baseline. By projecting the potential anticipation improvements on this baseline measurement, a potential fuel consumption reduction of 9.5% at the cost of 4.6% additional trip time was found. Overall, the current research suggested that truck drivers are willing to improve their anticipation behavior, and that this improvement can lead to substantial fuel consumption reduction. Furthermore, it was found that the potential fuel savings are often limited by visibility. This suggests a potential for GPS-based driver support systems which can help the driver to enhance their anticipation behavior even further.