INVESTIGATION OF PERCEIVED RISK ENCOUNTERED BY ELECTRIC VEHICLE DRIVERS IN DISTINCT CONTEXTS

Abstract

Not only pollution concerns, but also the rising prices of fuel used in conventional vehicles are enforcing people to make use of electric vehicles. In spite of numerous advantages such as pollution‐free, noiseless smooth drive; there may be the new possibility of difficulties occurring due to the quiet nature of electric vehicles (EVs). To examine this, it was intended to conduct an extensive questionnaire survey with 398 driver participants to acquire technical data at Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). The analysis used a well‐proven driver behaviour questionnaire (DBQ) built on a six‐point scale to statistically evaluate driver behaviour responses to perceived risk. This study aims to evaluate the perceived risk encountered by drivers that influence road safety by considering age group, driving experience, and gender. A systematic ANOVA approach was employed to evaluate the significant factors. The results show that the perceived risk is different based on the gender of the driver, especially when parking the vehicle (p=0.000, F=10.11716>Fcrit). The moderate difficulty level for identifying the presence of electric vehicles is present in almost all situations; however, no significant difference was recorded based on gender, age, and driving experience in the rest of the cases. The outcome of the proposed work would be useful while designing the safety policy for electric vehicles.

Keywords

• anova
• driver’s perception
• electric vehicles
• driver behaviour
• road safety