Engineering Student Presents Original Research to Transportation Research Board

Marci Early, a junior civil engineering student, presented her research at the annual meeting of the Transportation Research Board in Washington, D.C., in January.

While completing a 10-week internship program at the Texas A&M Transportation Institute for the Center for Advancing Transportation Leadership and Safety in College Station, Texas, Early was mentored by Karen Nixon. Nixon gave her the task of researching the operation and performance of drivers at two­way stop controlled intersections, including studying how drivers understand what to do when it comes to right­of­way. This study was vital in understanding dangerous driving behavior at intersections where traffic flows down one road and two opposing roads are stopped.

In her research, Early found that 49 states have specific clauses that say vehicles making a left­turn do not have the right of way, even if they arrive at the stop first. Early observed and filmed seven two­way stop controlled intersections in Bryan and College Station, Texas to determine if drivers were following these laws.

"We did a lot of field work to see what people were actually doing," said Early, "Ultimately, we found that 41 percent of drivers aren't following left turn laws."

By performing a statistical analysis on the 113 scenarios observed over 25 hours, Early found that the amount traffic on the stopped lanes and the vehicle's' order of arrival was more influential on driver behavior than the actual law, causing incorrect left­turn execution.

Upon Nixon's urging, Early submitted her research to the Transportation Research Board, a part of the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine. Days after her submission, Early recieved an email asking her to present at TRB's annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

Early had time to practice only twice before presenting her research at a conference housing 12,000 transportation industry professionals.

"I didn't realize how big of a deal it was for an undergraduate to present," said Early, "You have to present as if you are the professional because, after all, it is your research."

At TRB, Early got to make countless network connections, landing at interview with Kimley­Horn, a planning a design consulting firm in her hometown of Atlanta. She was granted an internship for summer 2016.

"While the experience was overwhelming, it was really cool to be able to say I was from the University of Arkansas," said Early of TRB, "I didn't expect this internship to lead to so much more. The exposure to full time research really piqued my interest in graduate school."

Early came to the University of Arkansas as part of a dual­degree program with Fort Valley State University in Fort Valley, Georgia, where she received her math degree. She plans to graduate with her civil engineering degree in May 2017 and then continue on to achieve her master's in civil engineering with a focus in transportation engineering.