A comprehension-based ergonomic redesign of Philippine road warning signs

• Published in: International journal of industrial ergonomics Vol. 65; pp. 17 - 25
• Main Authors: Bañares, Judy Riza, Caballes, Shirley Ann, Serdan, Mary Joy, Liggayu, Alaine T., Bongo, Miriam F.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 01.05.2018; Elsevier BV
• Subjects: AHP; Analytic hierarchy process; Automobile drivers; Cognitive ergonomics; Comprehensibility; Displays; Emergency communications systems; Ergonomics; Human error; Redesign; Road safety; Roads; Sign effectiveness; Traffic accidents & safety; Traffic control; Traffic signs; Warning; Warning sign redesign; Philippines; Cognitive ergonomics; AHP; Comprehensibility; Road safety; Sign effectiveness; Warning sign redesign
• ISSN: 0169-8141; 1872-8219
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ergon.2018.01.011

Safety in the road environment is dictated by the effectiveness of road warning signs in terms of comprehensibility. Due to prevalent road accidents associated with human error and confusions with road warning signs, there is a need for signs that are not well-comprehended by drivers to be investigated and further revised. This paper aims to measure the comprehension level of road warning signs in the Philippines and propose redesigned alternative road warning signs with reference to the ergonomic principles of display design. In selecting the most suitable alternative design, an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method is employed. It is found that more than half of the assessed signs fall below the standards set by the American National Standard Institute (ANSI), thus, leading to the proposal of alternative sign designs. To validate the significant improvement between the prior and new designs, a Mann-Whitney rank sum test is performed. The redesigned alternatives exhibited substantial improvement on the comprehension level of drivers. This implies that the application of ergonomic principles significantly increases driver comprehension level. •We measure comprehension level of road warning signs.•Ergonomic principles of sign design are embedded to the redesigned road warning signs.•An analytic hierarchy process is used to select the most suitable alternative sign design.•Mann-Whitney rank sum test is performed to validate the improvements from the pre- and post-comprehension test.•The application of ergonomic principles to alternate redesigned signs proved to have increased comprehension levels.