Survey on Vehicle Horn Use at Intersections in Taipei City, Taiwan

The car horn is originally installed in vehicles for safety. In urban areas of several countries, many face serious noise problems related to the use of car and motorbike horns. Our final goals are to clarify the causes of driver horn use, and to propose the transportation system designed to suppress driver horn use. To achieve them, relationships between horn use and various factors including driver awareness and behavior, the vehicular environment and the transportation system should be investigated. In the present study, therefore, surveys were conducted to grasp current circumstances of horn use and traffic at three intersections in the urban area of Taiwan. As a result, frequency of honking increased as traffic volume increased during hours other than weekday rush hours. It is supposed that high traffic volumes during the morning and evening rush hours on weekdays were due to many motorcycles. In terms of vehicle type, the relationship between driver horn use and the traffic volume of standard-sized vehicle was found. Moreover, the analysis of honking in traffic signal cycles in each intersection revealed that frequency of honking increased when the left-turning vehicles obstructed traffic on other lanes.