Follow up study to the heavy goods vehicle blind spot modelling and reconstruction trial

Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) manufactured since January 2006 must be fitted with rear-view mirrors that conform to the requirements of Directive 2003/97/EC. Until recently vehicles manufactured before 2006 have been required to meet the older and less stringent requirements of Directive 71/127/EEC. Since the 31st March 2009, Directive 2007/38/EC requires all N2 and N3 class vehicles manufactured since 1st January 2000 to be equipped, on the passenger side, with wide-angle and close-proximity mirrors which fulfil the requirements for Directive 2003/97/EC. This report describes the findings of study by TRL to investigate the direct and indirect field of vision from three HGVs and to identify areas alongside each vehicle where a passenger car or a vulnerable road user could be hidden in a blind spot. Three supplementary devices (a BDS mirror, a Dobli mirror and a Fresnel lens) were then added to the vehicles and measurements taken to identify the ground plane field of vision offered by each device, and to identify how effective each device was at eliminating the potential blind spots.