Road sharing - does it matter what road users think of each other?

vExecutive SummaryThe aim of this report is to inform the RAC Foundation about the existingknowledge base on road sharing.We propose that the idea of a road user’s ‘moral model’ of other road usersprovides a sensible focus for research within this broad field. This moral model,we suggest, has two parts:• A part which attributes psychological characteristics – things like goals,motivations, intentions, attitudes or character traits – to types of road user(defined by observable characteristics, which could include vehicle type,or behaviour).• A part which attributes moral characteristics – things like rights,responsibilities, and legitimate claims – to different types of road user, in thecontext of different types of place.We make use of such a moral model when explaining and evaluating otherroad users’ behaviour. (Whether moral models also have an impact on ouranticipation of other road users’ behaviour is a difficult question on which, forthe time being, we remain neutral.)In particular, moral models play a role in an individual’s judgement of thesuccess of their interaction with other road users. From the individual’sperspective, it seems reasonable to distinguish three levels of success ininteraction: avoidance of collisions, achievement of goals, and quality ofexperiences. Success at the first of these levels is a simple matter of fact, butat the second and third levels moral models are invoked. Because people havedifferent goals and different experiential needs and responses, and becausenot everyone can have everything they want, the best that can be achieved isa fair distribution of goal-achievement and experience-quality; a judgement offairness rests in turn on an assessment of how reasonable and legitimate theclaims made by each road user are.Research into moral models has a number of potential impacts on policyand practice.• Behaviour change. Moral models could play an important role in efforts totackle undesirable behaviours (such as aggression), as well as the promotionof behavioural choices to support wider objectives such as better publichealth, improved mobility, enhanced economic efficiency and reducedenvironmental impact. Whether they also have a potential role in road safetyremains an open question.