EFFECT OF PEDESTRIAN SIGNALS AND SIGNAL TIMING ON PEDESTRIAN ACCIDENTS

The purpose of this study was to determine whether pedestrian accidents are significantly affected by the presence of pedestrian signal indications and by different strategies for signal timing. Data related to pedestrian accidents, intersection geometrics, traffic and pedestrian volumes, roadway environment, and signal operation were collected for 1297 traffic-signalized intersections in 15 cities throughout the United States. The data were analyzed by using various statistical tests, which included branching analysis, correlation analysis, chi-square analysis, and the analysis of variance and covariance. The results showed no significant difference in pedestrian accidents between intersections that had standard-timed (concurrent walk) pedestrian signals compared with intersections that had no pedestrian signal indications. In addition, exclusive-timed locations were found to be associated with lower pedestrian accident experience for intersections with moderate-to-high pedestrian volumes when compared with both standard-timed intersections and intersections that had no pedestrian signals. In some cases pedestrian accidents were also found to be significantly affected by other variables, including street operation (one-way and two-way streets), presence of local bus operations, and area type. (Author)