Naturalistic Driving Studies: An Overview and International Perspective

Naturalistic driving studies (NDS) are a method in transportation research that is increasingly used to bridge the gap between epidemiological research (e.g., using population crash databases) and individual level or experimental research (e.g., self-reported surveys or driving simulators). This article begins with defining NDS and providing a brief overview of NDS methods, including the strengths, limits and the unique ethical issues involved in conducting NDS. Following this, five case studies from Australia, Canada, China, the European Union, and the United States are presented, along with a synthesis of the lessons they have learned. The article concludes with a discussion of what the future of NDS may look like.