Traffic and Highway Geometric Characteristics Associated with Pedestrian Crashes in Virginia

摘要

Although motor vehicle traffic volume continues to increase, recent studies have shown that in most cities about 90 percent of all internal trips within the central business district are walking trips. Additionally, those rural areas experiencing high growth rates are also contending with increases in pedestrian traffic. As pedestrian traffic grows, and the inevitable conflicts between pedestrians and motorists become more frequent, it is axiomatic that the the level of risk, particularly for the pedestrians, increases as well. Between 1990 and 1994, pedestrian deaths accounted for 10.1 to 12.5 percent of all traffic fatalities in Virginia. This figure suggests that pedestrian safety improvement can be a promising candidate for the attention of state safety program officials, and that innovative countermeasures should be reviewed. This study was initiated to determine the traffic and geometric charactistics that significantly affect the safety of different classifications of pedestrians as a first step in the identification of potentially effective countermeasures for reducing pedestrian deaths and injuries resulting from crashes with motor vehicles.