Integrating Safety and Efficiency: Design and Evaluation of Dynamic Emergency Evacuation Sign System in Urban Rail Transit

The emergency evacuation sign system is crucial for the safety and sustainable development of urban rail transit. Dynamic emergency evacuation signs, which offer real-time guidance during emergencies, are gaining prominence. There is an urgent need to develop a dynamic system that balances perceptual and cognitive visibility. Against this backdrop, this study built a simulation experiment platform based on BIM, Unity, and VR. Eight experimental scenarios were created using the platform: two emergency events (fire/fire accompanied by power outage) × four emergency evacuation signage systems (static emergency signage system/dynamic dissuasion emergency signage system/dynamic dissuasion emergency signage system with flashing/dynamic dissuasion emergency signage system with flashing and auxiliary information), and experimental testing was completed. The evacuation behavior parameters of 39 passengers were extracted and used to construct a multidimensional indicator system. Subsequently, generalized estimation equations were applied to investigate the impact mechanism of signage systems on passengers’ evacuation behavior. Finally, the coupling coordination degree model was used to quantitatively evaluate the coupling coordination level of four emergency evacuation signage systems under different emergencies. Results indicate that compared to static signage system, the three sets of dynamic identification system schemes have a positive impact on passenger evacuation behavior and significantly reduce the number of decision-making errors. Particularly in high-risk scenarios involving fire accompanied by power outages, the dynamic dissuasion emergency signage system with flashing and auxiliary information outperforms others by achieving a better balance of reliability, efficiency, and safety. This study investigates the efficacy of various emergency evacuation signage systems across diverse emergency scenarios, offering insights for the enhanced design of such systems and thereby fostering the sustainable development of urban rail transit infrastructure.