ACTEURS - a Project to Study how Human Behaviour is Crucial during Fire in TunnelsThe fire which erupted on 4th June in the 12.9 km Frejus tunnel, killing two Slovak truck drivers, recalls that human behaviour in tunnel is decisive. Rescue and firefighting means have been optimal to save as many people as possible and extinguish the fire as fast as possible. The Serbian driver of the truck which caught fire had a good behaviour and quick reaction since he parked his 38-ton truck to the right-hand side of the road, got off the vehicle and started the alarm by activating at the same moment a push button and calling by telephone the management centre. However, the Frejus tragedy seems to show that even when the human behaviour is appropriate, it does not suffice in itself to avoid victims. What is known so far about this new disaster in an Alpine tunnel is rich with lessons from the human factor standpoint. Tunnel safety relies upon physical and technical aspects as well as upon operational decisions. Still, the optimisation of safety also requires considering human factors related to the user and his vehicle. ACTEURS, a French acronym meaning Improving the Tunnel-Operator-User Links to Enhance Safety, is a project which objective is to improve the understanding of how users behave in both normal and emergency situations, in order to derive design and operational criteria and concepts that more closely match how people actually behave. The ACTEURS project is headed by ATMB (the French operator of the Mont Blanc tunnel) and Dedale, a Paris-based company specialised in cognitive science and applied research and development of risk management tools. It is organised in two phases. Phase 1, ended in August 2004, was dedicated to research and data collection on users' behaviours in both normal and emergency situations. Phase 2 is focused on turning recommendations resulting from phase 1 into operational measures. The first phase involves three motorway and tunnel concession companies who operate 11 tunnels in the Alps (ATMB, the Rhone-Alps motorway company AREA and the French operator of the Frejus road tunnel SFTRF). The second phase started in February 2005 with the addition of new partners (French motorway concessionaires APRR and ESCOTA) and is scheduled to finish in July 2006.Phase 1 encompassed three specific studies. The first study consisted in drawing an overview of what tunnel operators and designers know about tunnel users' behaviour and knowledge. This has been achieved through a literature review, interviews with tunnel operators and designers. The results mainly showed that tunnel safety management is based on numerous expectations about drivers' behaviours. Expectations are not necessarily realistic. Most drivers do not follow safety instructions. To better understand users' behaviours might help imagine complementary strategies, more oriented towards the active role that users can have in tunnel safety.The second study aimed at better understanding the actual tunnel users' behaviours and difficulties when driving under a tunnel in normal situations. Results suggest an overall lack of knowledge or inaccurate knowledge on tunnel equipment and operation, specific driving rules and appropriate behaviours. This study showed that users have some difficulties to perceive most of the information provided before and inside the tunnel. They do not adjust immediately their driving behaviour to the specific tunnel environment. First, they focus on reaching the maximum authorised speed. Then they work on adjusting the distance with the forehead vehicle, not understanding the specific device devoted to help them measure the distance. Whatever the tunnel, it is only from the second third of the tunnel that users pay attention to the tunnel infrastructure, starting to notice signposts, emergency exits, fire extinguishers and other safety devices.The third study focused on better understanding the actual users' behaviour under a tunnel in emergency situations.The ongoing second phase is to derive rules and principles for tunnel design and/or operation from the outcomes of phase 1. It suggests various operational solutions for improving the interfacing of tunnel with users through a better consideration of behavioural data. The aim is to translate the safety recommendations of phase 1 into practical as well as realistic axes of improvement, thus proposing operational and applicable solutions for each tunnel. Visit www.atmb.net/atmb_tunnel.php?id_rubrique=110&lang=en and www.asecap.com/presentations-vienna-2005/presentations/28_2A_7a_E.pdf (English) or www.atmb.net/atmb_tunnel.php?id_rubrique=110&lang=fr, www.asecap.com/presentations-vienna-2005/presentations/29_2A_7b_F.pdf and www.predit.prd.fr/predit3/synthesePublication.fo?inCde=19646 (French). More from frederic.ricard@atmb.net or anoizet@dedale.net 29/05. View of the remains of the truck carrying tyres which caught fire in the Frejus tunnel.