New Level-of-Service Standard for Signalized Crosswalks with Bi-Directional Pedestrian Flows

Abstract

This paper proposes, for the first time, a new set of level-of-service (LOS) standards for signalized crosswalks in Hong Kong commercial/shopping areas which explicitly take the bi-directional pedestrian flow effects into account. An interview survey technique which utilized pedestrian stated preference was used to determine the respective congestion boundaries for each service level. This paper defines explicitly the LOS boundaries for different levels of bi-directional flow regarding area occupancy, pedestrian flow, and walking speed. The boundaries range from strong effect (0.1–0.5 flow ratios) on the minor flow direction to a mild effect (0.5–1.0 flow ratios) on the major flow direction. These results are complementary to and are in keeping with those LOS standards for walkways reported in previous studies which did not account for the effects of bi-directional flow. The determined perceived pedestrian LOS under bi-directional flow is expected to be directly applicable to Hong Kong or other Asian cities with similar pedestrian physical characteristics and land use.