Animated "virtual agents" could help keep the roads of the future safer by alerting people behind the wheel of semiautonomous cars to oncoming hazards, new research suggests.

Roosevelt Boulevard is a vital artery connecting North and Northeast Philadelphia, used by tens of thousands of people each day. It is as complex as it is iconic, with much of its length consisting of 12 lanes of moving traffic. It has 56 intersections with traffic signals, 94 unsignalized intersections with 129 access points, and 54 crossovers between inner and outer lanes.