Highway Workers’ Perception of Autonomous Truck-Mounted Attenuator: A Case Study in Indiana’s DOT

Highway maintenance operations have been associated with high rates of crashes, leading to workers’ injuries and fatalities. To protect the state Department of Transportation (DOT)’s maintenance workers, autonomous systems have been implemented in various work zone maintenance operations, including the Autonomous Truck-Mounted Attenuator (ATMA). Though the ATMA has been tested in several DOTs, DOT workers’ perception of the ATMA has not been well studied. To understand workers’ perception of the ATMA system, this study collected evaluations from 14 Indiana DOT workers after 6 weeks of closed-road and open-road tests. The test was conducted during four mobile work zone operations and under different roadway conditions. The findings of this study suggest that workers believe the ATMA system improves their safety and productivity in these operations. Additionally, longer exposure to ATMA operations leads to more positive evaluations. Although previous studies suggest that age is a key factor that influences users’ evaluations of emerging technologies, this study does not reveal any age-related differences. The findings of this study provide insights into future autonomous system implementation and suggest that proper training is an indispensable step for the adoption of such technologies.