Impacts of countermeasures on driving performance through drivers' attention in rural curves: a driving simulation study

Drivers' attention is a critical factor influencing traffic safety. However, limited work explained the relationships between countermeasures, drivers' attention, and driving performance in rural curves. This study explores the impacts of countermeasures on driving performance through attention under different weather conditions and traffic flows using an experiment with a driving simulator and an eye tracker. The multivariate regression analysis verified the mediating role of cognitive workload measured by changes in pupil diameter on the relations between countermeasures and driving performance. Then, all the countermeasures were effective in ensuring driving performance. The rank of effectiveness was provided. In addition, the effectiveness of countermeasures varied across weather conditions and traffic flows. The paper contributed new insights into the relationships between countermeasures and driving performance by incorporating drivers' attention. In practice, recommendations are provided to improve traffic safety in rural curves under different external environments.