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**Federal Highway Administration Research and Technology**Coordinating, Developing, and Delivering Highway Transportation Innovations


Report**This report is an archived publication and may contain dated technical, contact, and link information** Federal Highway Administration >
  
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   Pedestrian and Bicyclist Intersection Safety Indices **Publication Number: FHWA-HRT-06-125**
      **Date:****November 2006** The Pedestrian and Bicyclist Intersection Safety Indices (ISI) Calculators that accompany this user manual are available in a Microsoft® Excel® spreadsheet format. Full functionality is only available in the Excel download. [Download pedestrian calculator HTML , Excel] [Download bicycle calculator calculator HTML , Excel]
		
Pedestrian and Bicyclist Intersection Safety Indices

**Final Report**

PDF Version (2.25)

PDF files can be viewed with the Acrobat® Reader®

Research, Development, and Technology
Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center
6300 Georgetown PikeMcLean, VA 22101-2296

Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety





FOREWORD
The primary objective of this study was to develop safety indices to allow engineers, planners, and other practitioners to proactively prioritize intersection crosswalks and intersection approaches with respect to pedestrian and bicycle safety. The models in this study use easilycollected, observable characteristics of an intersection to produce safety index values. Practitioners will be able to use these models on a small or large scale to determine where best to focus efforts to improve pedestrian and bicyclist safety. 

Michael Trentacoste, Director
Director, Office of Safety
Research and Development
 
**Notice**
This document is disseminated under the sponsorship of the U.S. Department of Transportation in the interest of information exchange. The  U.S. Government assumes no liability for the use of the information contained in this document.

The
U.S. Government does not endorse products or manufacturers. Trademarks or manufacturers' names appear in this report only because they are considered essential to the objective of the document.
**Quality Assurance Statement**
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) provides high-quality information to serve Government, industry, and the public in a manner that promotes public understanding. Standards and policies are used to ensure and maximize the quality, objectivity, utility, and integrity of its information. FHWA periodically reviews quality issues and adjusts its programs and processes to ensure continuous quality improvement.



TECHNICAL REPORT DOCUMENTATION PAGE
**1. Report No.**FHWA-HRT-06-125
		**2. Government Accession No.**
		**3. Recipient’s Catalog No.****4. Title and Subtitle**Pedestrian and Bicyclist Intersection Safety Indices: Final Report
		**5. Report Date**November 2006**6. Performing Organization Code****7.Author(s)**Daniel L. Carter, William W. Hunter, Charles V. Zegeer, J. Richard Stewart, and Herman F. Huang
		**8. Performing Organization Report No.****9. Performing Organization Name and Address**
		Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center
		Highway Safety Research Center
		University of North Carolina
		730 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, CB #3430
		Chapel Hill, NC 27599
		**10. Work Unit No. (TRAIS)****11. Contract or Grant No.**DTFH61-02-C-00007**12. Sponsoring Agency Name and Address**
		Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center
		Federal Highway Administration
		6300 Georgetown Pike
		McLean, VA 22101
		**13. Type of Report and Period Covered**Final Report, 2001–2005**14. Sponsoring Agency’s Code****15. Supplementary Notes**Contracting Officer’s Technical Representative (COTR): Ann Do, HRDS-06**16. Abstract**
		The primary objective of this study was to develop safety indices to allow engineers, planners, and other practitioners to proactively prioritize intersection 
		crosswalks and intersection approaches with respect to pedestrian and bicycle safety. The study involved collecting data on pedestrian and bicycle crashes, 
		conflicts, avoidance maneuvers, and subjective ratings of intersection video clips by pedestrian and bicycle experts. There were a total of 68 intersection 
		crosswalks selected for the pedestrian analysis from the cities of Philadelphia, PA; San Jose, CA; and Miami-Dade County, FL. The bicycle analysis included 67 
		intersection approaches from Gainesville, FL; Philadelphia, PA; and Portland and Eugene, OR.
		Prioritization models were developed based on expert safety ratings and behavioral data. Indicative variables included in the pedestrian safety index model 
		included type of intersection control (signal or stop sign), number of through lanes, 85th percentile vehicle speed, main street traffic volume, and area type. 
		Indicative  variables in the bicycle safety models (for through, right-turn, and left-turn bike movements) included various combinations of: presence of bicycle
		 lane, main and cross street traffic volumes, number of through lanes, presence of on-street parking, main street speed limit, presence of traffic signal, 
		 number of turn lanes, and others. Through a user-friendly guide, practitioners will be able to use the safety indices to identify which crosswalks and 
		 intersection approaches have the highest priority for in-depth pedestrian and bicycle safety evaluations and subsequently use other tools to identify and 
		 address potential safety problems.**17. Key Words**
		Pedestrian safety, bicyclist safety, safety index, safety rating, crosswalk safety, intersection	prioritization.
		**18. Distribution Statement**
		No restrictions. This document is available to the public through the National Technical Information Service, Springfield, VA 22161.**19. Security Classif. (of this report)**Unclassified
		**20. Security Classif. (of this page)**Unclassified
		**21. No. of Pages**96
		**22. Price**Form DOT F 1700.7 (8-72)
		Reproduction of completed page authorized

SI* (Modern Metric) Conversion Factors

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND

CHAPTER 2. LITERATURE REVIEW
Bicyclist Compatibility
	Bicycle Crash Analyses
	Pedestrian Compatibility
	Pedestrian Crash AnalysesCHAPTER 3. APPROACH METHODOLOGY

CHAPTER 4. SITE SELECTION

CHAPTER 5. DATA COLLECTION
Physical Characteristics
	Crashes
	Behavioral Data: Conflicts and Avoidance Maneuvers
		Definitions of Conflicts and Avoidance Maneuvers
			Pedestrian and Motorist Conflicts and Avoidance Maneuvers
			Bicycle Conflicts and Avoidance Maneuvers
	Safety Ratings
		Survey Design
			Pilot Survey
			Survey Audience
			Ratings DataCHAPTER 6. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS AND MODEL DEVELOPMENT
Bike ISI Development
		Ratings Models
			Behavioral Models
			Final Bike ISI Models
			Bike ISI Adjustment Factors
	Ped ISI Development
		Ratings Model and Behavioral Model
			Final Ped ISI Model
			Ped ISI Adjustment Factors
	Using the Ped ISI and Bike ISI
	Discussion of the Models
		Bike ISI Variables
			Ped ISI Variables
	Comparison of Safety Measures
	Discussion of Variable Inclusion
	Accompanying Local Field Studies
		Pedestrian Local Field Study
			Bicyclist Local Field StudyCHAPTER 7. CONCLUSIONS AND DISCUSSION
Application of the Ped ISI and Bike ISI
	Geographical Relevance of the Models
	Limitations of the Research
	Countermeasures
		PEDSAFE
			BIKESAFE
	Recommendations for Future Research
		Expansion of Scope
			Field Validation
			Crash–Based ValidationAPPENDIX A: DATA COLLECTION INSTRUCTIONS AND FORMS

APPENDIX B. CONFLICTS INVOLVING BICYCLISTS

APPENDIX C. WEB SITES FOR SAFETY RATINGS SURVEY

APPENDIX D. LESSONS LEARNED ABOUT ONLINE VIDEO-BASED SURVEYS

REFERENCES


LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1. Hierarchical order of safety measures
Figure 2. Video camera position for pedestrian data collection
Figure 3. Video camera positions for bicyclist data collection
Figure 4. Illustration for pedestrian survey
Figure 5. Video clip for pedestrian survey
Figure 6. Illustration for bicyclist survey
Figure 7. Video clip for bicyclist survey
Figure 8. Ratings distribution at pedestrian sites
Figure 9. Ratings distribution for through movements at bicycle sites
Figure 10. Ratings distribution for right turns at bicycle sites
Figure 11. Ratings distribution for left turns at bicycle sites
Figure 12. Bicycle facility types
Figure 13. Matrix of pedestrian safety countermeasures associated with various objectives
Figure 14. Matrix of pedestrian safety countermeasures associated with various objectives (continued)
Figure 15. Matrix of bicyclist safety countermeasures associated with various objectives
Figure 16. Matrix of bicyclist safety countermeasures associated with various objectives (continued)
Figure 17. Intersection Leg Labels
Figure 18. Camera Position #1
Figure 19. Camera Position #2
Figure 20. Camera Position #3
Figure 21. Camera Position #4
Figure 22. Pedestrian survey introduction page
Figure 23. Bicycle survey introduction page
Figure 24. Preliminary pedestrian user questions
Figure 25. Preliminary bicyclist user questions
Figure 26. Pedestrian survey instructions
Figure 27. Bicycle survey instructions
Figure 28. Sample pedestrian video clips page
Figure 29. Sample bicycle video clips page
Figure 30. Top of pedestrian rating page
Figure 31. Top of bicycle rating page
Figure 32. Bottom of pedestrian rating page
Figure 33. Bottom of bicycle rating page
Figure 34. Edit answers page for pedestrian survey
Figure 35. Edit answers page for bicycle survey


LIST OF TABLES

Table 1. Summary of Crash Data
Table 2. Pedestrian conflicts and avoidance maneuvers
Table 3. Motorist conflicts and avoidance maneuvers at pedestrian events
Table 4. Bicyclist avoidance maneuvers
Table 5. Motorist avoidance maneuvers at bicyclist events
Table 6. Pedestrian survey participants
Table 7. Bicyclist survey participants
Table 8. Summary of site average ratings
Table 9. Variables used in bicycle analysis
Table 10. Through-movement bicycle ratings model
Table 11. Right-turn bicycle ratings model
Table 12. Left-turn bicycle ratings model
Table 13. Behavioral model for through bicyclists
Table 14. Behavioral model for right-turning bicyclists
Table 15. Behavioral model for left-turning bicyclists
Table 16. Final bike ISI models
Table 17. Variables used in bike ISI models
Table 18. Variables used in pedestrian analysis
Table 19. Pedestrian rating model
Table 20. Pedestrian behavioral model
Table 21. Final Ped ISI model
Table 22. Variables used in Ped ISI model
Table 23. Characteristics of pedestrian and bicyclist safety measures
Table 24. Comparison of pedestrian safety measures
Table 25. Comparison of bicycle safety measures
Table 26. Field versus video ratings for pedestrian local study
Table 27. Field versus video ratings for bicycle local study
Table 28. Bicycle intersection safety index (Bike ISI)
Table 29. Pedestrian intersection safety index (Ped ISI)




	FHWA-HRT-06-125 **Table of Contents | Next** Page Owner: Office of Research, Development, and Technology, Office of Safety, RDT
            
            
            
            Topics: research, safety, pedestrian & bicycle safety, intersection safety
                
                  Keywords: research, safety, pedestrian safety, bicyclist safety, safety index, safety rating, crosswalk safety, intersection prioritization 
                
                  TRT Terms: pedestrian safety, bicycle travel, intersections
                
                  Scheduled Update: Archive -  No Update needed
            
            
            
            
            This page last modified on 03/08/2016


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