Exploring the Role of Arterial Roads’ Characteristics on Pedestrian and Cyclist Crashes

Details

• Creators:
  Losada-Rojas, Lisa Lorena ; Lasso, Yully Chaves ; Ferenchak, Nicholas N.
• Corporate Creators:
  Center for Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety (CPBS) Tier-1 University Transportation Center (UTC) ; University of New Mexico
• Corporate Contributors:
  United States. Department of Transportation. University Transportation Centers (UTC) Program ; United States. Department of Transportation. Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  Access Control (Transportation) Arterial Highways Crashes Cyclists Pedestrians
• Publication/ Report Number:
  23UNM05
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.21949/5fe4-7b37
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  United States
• Edition:
  Final Report – June 2023 to May 2024
• Corporate Publisher:
  Center for Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety (CPBS) Tier-1 University Transportation Center (UTC)
• Abstract:
  Pedestrians and bicyclists, termed Vulnerable Road Users (VRUs), are disproportionately affected in crashes. The impact of arterial roads on crashes is well-documented, especially concerning VRUs. Prior research highlights factors such as access management, built environment, land use, and socioeconomic conditions as significant contributors to VRU crash frequency. However, limited research has explored these relationships between arterial roads’ features and its surroundings with the occurrence of pedestrian and bicyclist crashes in New Mexico, a proper case study for this research given its high rates of fatality per capita for bicyclist and pedestrians compared to any other state in the U.S. Hence, this study aims to answer the following research questions: 1) Are high-speed, high-access roads more likely to experience crashes than roads with better access management and/or slower speeds? The findings from this inquiry will enlighten the subsequent questions: 2) Do more driveways per mile correlate to more non-motorized crashes per mile? and 3) What other factors related to arterials-built environment, characteristics, and demographics correlate with a higher likelihood of pedestrian and bicycle crashes? 4) What are the spatial patterns of pedestrian and bicyclist crashes and their associated factors (e.g., road characteristics, land use, and sociodemographic)? Using two years (2018-2019) of crash data from the NMDOT, along with data on arterial features, surrounding land uses, and socioeconomic variables, this study identifies key factors influencing VRU crashes. The findings underscore the importance of access management in reducing crashes and highlight the most critical arterial road features and socioeconomic factors contributing to VRU crashes. Additionally, the study identifies the most critical corridors in Albuquerque, characterizing them with the variables impacting VRU crash frequency. These insights can inform future planning and intervention strategies to effectively implement crash mitigation measures.
• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  69A3552348336
• Collection(s):
  University Transportation Centers
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:20059a54d69b043f9da41396a7218e6597d0cb61b3ebd79935fdcdd2c5f8c84bef8d016ccfa206bbe5ce06eacdedd57bb73ab43ba49df40806e70717e75db85a
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/86225/dot_86225_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 4.19 MB ]