In-vehicle systems that assist the driver with his driving task are developed and introduced to the market at increasing rate. Drivers may be supported during congested traffic conditions by a so-called Congestion Assistant consisting of a mix of informing, assisting and controlling functions. This paper describes the impacts of the Congestion Assistant on the driver in terms of driving behaviour and acceptance. Thirty-seven participants took part in a driving simulator study. The observed driving behaviour showed promising improvements in traffic safety when approaching the traffic jam. Moreover, positive effects of the system on traffic efficiency can be expected in the jam. The participants stated to appreciate the Congestion Assistant, although not all functions were equally rated. To increase the performance and acceptance of the total system, some refinements were suggested.@en

An increasing amount of vehicles are equipped with driver assistance systems; many of the vehicles currently on the market can be optionally equipped with adaptive cruise control and lane centering systems. Using both systems at the same time brings the vehicle to SAE level-2 automation . This means a driver does not need to perform longitudinal and lateral operational driving, although the driver should be ready to intervene at any time. While this can provide comfort, the interaction between vehicles operated by these systems might cause some undesired effects. This becomes particularly relevant with increasing market penetration rates. This paper describes an experiment with seven SAE level-2 vehicles driven as a platoon on public roads for a trip of almost 500 km. The paper discusses how the experiment was organized and the equipment of the vehicles. It also discusses the interaction of the platoon in traffic, as well as, in basic terms, the interaction between the automated vehicles. The experiences can be useful for other studies setting up field tests. The conclusion from this platoon test is: intentionally creating platoons on public roads is difficult in busy traffic conditions. Moreover, interactions between the vehicles in the platoon show that the current SAE level-2 systems are not suitable for driving as platoons of more than typically three to four vehicles, because of instabilities in the car-following behavior.@en