SAFE TRANSPORTATION FOR EVERY PEDESTRIAN CASE STUDY

NCDOT Evaluates Effects of Beachside 

Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon

Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina 

KEY ELEMENTS:

Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon 

Implementation

STEP Countermeasure Evaluation

The North Carolina Department of Transportation 

(NCDOT) installed a Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon (PHB) 

on Causeway Drive at the intersection with N. Channel 

Drive in Wrightsville Beach. The PHB was installed 

to serve both residents and beachgoers crossing 

the arterial roadway. Both before and after it was 

implemented, NCDOT conducted an evaluation of 

pedestrian behavior and motor vehicle compliance at 

the crossing.

BACKGROUND

Wrightsville Beach is a coastal community 

east of Wilmington, NC. Causeway Drive 

is one of only two routes from Wilmington, 

and mainland North Carolina, to the 

nearby beaches. As such, Causeway Drive 

serves many beachgoers, including both 

pedestrians and motorized road users. 

Lodging, restaurants, and shops are all 

within walking distance of the intersection 

of Causeway Drive and N. Channel Drive. 

In addition to beachgoers, the crosswalk 

serves residents and families as they access 

the nearby churches and Wrightsville Beach 

Elementary School. The speed limit of 

Causeway Drive is 35 miles per hour, though 

during the morning and afternoon hours a 

School Zone is in place with a 25 mile per 

hour speed limit and a crossing guard is 

present at the crosswalk.

NCDOT installed the PHB at Causeway 

Drive and N. Channel Drive, as shown in 

figure 1, in April 2013. PHBs are traffic control 

devices designed to help pedestrians 

safely cross busy or higher-speed roadways 

at midblock crossings and uncontrolled 

intersections.1

 The beacon consists of two 

red lenses above an amber lens, which all 

remain dark until a pedestrian activates 

the beacon by pushing the button. The 

beacon then flashes to alert motorists to 

stop and provides a WALK display to the 

pedestrian. PHBs have been shown to 

reduce pedestrian crashes by up to 55 

percent, including a 15 percent reduction in 

fatal and serious injury crashes.

For more information, please contact:

Brian Mayhew, State Traffic Safety Engineer, NCDOT

bmayhew@ncdot.gov | 919.814.5010

©2020 NCDOT.

Figure 1. Photo. Cars come to a stop and a pedestrian crosses 

Causeway Drive while the PHB is activated. 
STEP: https://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/ped_bike/step/

Case Study: NCDOT Evaluates Effects of Beachside Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon

COMPLIANCE EVALUATION 

One of the keys to a successful PHB 

implementation is that drivers recognize the 

signal and stop to allow pedestrians to cross 

when the beacon is activated. To assess 

the Causeway Drive PHB, NCDOT analyzed 

the crossing both before and after the PHB 

was installed. The analysis focused on three 

major aspects of the intersection:

• Pedestrian crossing volumes before and 

after PHB implementation.

• Vehicle compliance at the crosswalk 

before and after PHB implementation.

• Pedestrian activation of the PHB after 

implementation.

Causeway Drive in the vicinity of the 

crosswalk was divided into four zones, and 

pedestrian crossing counts were collected 

by zone. This allowed NCDOT to determine 

whether any changes in pedestrian 

crossing behavior occurred following 

implementation of the PHB. Eight hours 

of before data were collected in August 

2011 and eight hours of after data were 

collected in September 2013. Both data 

collection periods were during daylight on 

weekdays when school was in session. 

In total, the site was observed for 

approximately 20 hours, and 460 

pedestrians and bicyclists were captured 

crossing Causeway Drive.

RESULTS

Vehicle compliance behavior at 

the crosswalk increased following 

implementation of the PHB. NCDOT defined 

vehicle compliance as any situation 

where pedestrian(s) were waiting to cross, 

vehicles were present, and all vehicles 

stopped to allow the pedestrians to cross. 

Before installation of the PHB, the vehicle 

compliance rate at the crosswalk was 27 

percent. Following installation of the PHB, 

vehicle compliance rose to 74 percent 

when the PHB was activated.

The percent of pedestrians and bicyclists 

using the crosswalk increased slightly 

following the installation of the PHB, from 45 

percent to 49 percent. 

References 

1FHWA. (2019). "Proven Safety Countermeasures: Pedestrian Hybrid Beacons." Last accessed May 13, 2020. 

https://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/provencountermeasures/ped_hybrid_beacon/.

“NCDOT PHB evaluations assess the safety 

benefits and performance of the treatment. This 

allows continuous improvement of our safety 

programs and helps address common questions 

and concerns from local government, NCDOT 

staff, and the public.” 

–Brian Mayhew, State Traffic Safety Engineer 

 

 

Figure 2. Graphic. Results of PHB evaluation in Wrightsville Beach.

Source: FHWA