The Role of Built Environment Factors in Enhancing Pedestrian Safety: A Comprehensive Analysis and Policy Implications

Details

• Creators:
  Khattak, Asad J. ; Bayati, Zeinab ; Appleyard, Bruce S.
• 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:
  • Built environment
  • Crash analysis
  • Crash severity
  • Cyclists
  • Pedestrian safety
  • Pedestrian-vehicle crashes
  • Transportation disadvantaged persons
• Publication/ Report Number:
  24UTK02
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  United States
• Edition:
  Final Report
• Corporate Publisher:
  Center for Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety (CPBS) Tier-1 University Transportation Center (UTC)
• Abstract:
  Pedestrian fatalities and injuries are a growing concern across the US. Understanding how pedestrians' and drivers' behaviors, roadway environments, and neighborhood-level factors interact to shape pedestrian crash outcomes is essential for developing targeted safety interventions. This study presents a comprehensive, multi-level analysis of pedestrian crash severity and frequency in North Carolina, utilizing a combination of crash, environmental, and demographic data. Crash-level data from the Pedestrian and Bicycle Crash Analysis Tool (PBCAT) were integrated with census tract-level demographics datasets to create a unique database. A Bayesian cumulative ordinal logit model that accounts for uncertainty was estimated for injury severity (2019 to 2022). A Zero-Hurdle Negative Binomial model was also estimated to investigate pedestrian crash frequency across 2,660 census tracts from 2019 to 2022, focusing on burden indicators. Findings reveal that built environment features such as lighting, pedestrian infrastructure, and roadway configuration significantly affect injury severity, given a crash. Behavioral crash types (e.g., working or playing on the roadway) were consistently associated with more severe outcomes. Burdens such as transportation costs were associated with higher crash frequencies and severities. In contrast, access burden was associated with fewer crashes but greater injury severity when crashes occurred. This study contributes uniquely to pedestrian safety by (1) revealing how different types of burdens are associated with crash outcomes, (2) demonstrating the value of integrating diverse datasets for a deeper understanding of crashes, and (3) applying advanced models to deal with uncertainty and inform place-based safety strategies.
• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  69A3552348336
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/93235/dot_93235_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.36 MB]
• Collection(s):
  University Transportation Centers
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:b975e829b53461dad72296be80361484ae19e3d39620c3beb6da44151a67dbe53a06260cdbb6e047e467a0897ec4997729f786752000dd05f2766eaf6e588131