Does a large group of pedestrians follow the evacuation signs? An experimental study

•This study used an experimental approach to explore the obedience of large groups to evacuation signs and considered the effect of herding effects on participants' path choices.•This study investigates the effects of different colors (red and green), shapes (arrows and runners), and states (flashing and always on) of evacuation signs on path selection for large evacuation groups.•This study compares the group evacuation results with the individual evacuation results and the leader-led small group evacuation to corroborate the experimental results from the side and to ensure the scientific validity of the experimental results.•Green runner evacuation sign has a good indication effect on group evacuation.•The herding effect in the evacuation process does not affect the guiding role of evacuation signs, and evacuees have an independent judgment in choosing their routes. Guidance signs are generally considered to be key in improving the efficiency of emergency building evacuations. During a group evacuation, how obedient is the group to the evacuation signs? Would different evacuation signs affect the judgment of evacuated groups? Evacuation experiments were conducted to explore the influence of evacuation signs on the path selection of evacuation groups. Fourteen classes with 514 participants participated in these experiments, and each class participated in one experiment. Six classes conducted the experiments without guidance signs, and the rest conducted the experiments with guidance signs. The influences of the sign's color (red and green), pattern (arrow and running man), and status (whether it flashes) on the route selection were studied. The results show that (1) the evacuation signs significantly affect the route choices of the evacuated groups. (2) The herding effect during the evacuation process does not influence the guiding effect of evacuation signs. (3) Evacuation signs of different colors and patterns have different guiding effects, and the Green running man sign has the best effect. (4) The constant bright, or flashing evacuation sign corresponding to the flashing Red running man has a significant impact on the route selection of the evacuated group. The results may provide a reference for improving the emergency evacuation guidance model of office buildings or other buildings with a large flow of people and optimize ideas for the design and layout of emergency evacuation signs.