Pedestrian motion along curves: a comparative study of dyads and individuals

Abstract

This study examines how individuals and dyads move along curved trajectories. By comparing velocities, path curvature, and their interplay across curved and straight segments, we identify distinct motion patterns. Specifically, dyads move more slowly than individuals on both straight and curved sections. Both individuals and dyads slow down as curvature increases, but individuals exhibit a slightly larger deceleration and more variability in curvature. However, these tendencies are modulated in certain environmental contexts, indicating context-dependent dynamics. Within dyads, the outer member covers longer distances with slightly lower curvature than the inner member, though the differences are modest. In curved segments, dyad members tend to balance their speeds, highlighting the need to account for intra-group roles in motion models and crowd-trajectory predictions.