Pedestrian Crossing Warrants for Urban Midblock Crossings under Mixed-Traffic Environment

Abstract

In recent times, amplified pedestrian-vehicle interaction, especially at urban midblock crossings, have ensued in higher risks and fatalities during pedestrian crossings. This situation further exacerbates under heterogeneous traffic conditions, where indiscriminate mix of vehicles with diverse static and dynamic characteristics in conjunction with loose lane discipline adds another dimension to the already multifaceted pedestrian-vehicle interaction phenomena. Because pedestrian crossing behavior is significantly governed by traffic flow characteristics, pedestrian characteristics, land-use, road geometry, and sociodemographic characteristics, it becomes a prerequisite to investigate pedestrian–vehicle interaction at microscopic levels for the design of efficient and safe crossing facilities. Therefore, in this regard, the objective of the current study is to develop warrants for pedestrian crossing facilities at urban midblock sections under mixed-traffic conditions prevailing in countries such as India. To comprehend this objective, pedestrian–vehicle (PV2) conflict analysis, augmenting both macroscopic and microscopic pedestrian crossing characteristics, is carried out at nine different unprotected midblock crosswalks located in different parts of India. Video-graphic surveys were conducted, and both macroscopic and microscopic characteristics were extracted at minute levels from the recorded video. Thereafter, level of service (LOS) thresholds are developed based on the extracted microscopic characteristics covering both operational (pedestrian delay) and safety (safety margin) aspects. The developed LOS thresholds were then correlated with pedestrian–vehicle conflict (PV2) values to develop pedestrian crossing warrants. The developed pedestrian crossing warrants can act as practical recommendations in identifying requisite pedestrian crossing facilities based on the observed pedestrian–vehicle interaction and pedestrian behavior for a given roadway and traffic condition.