This paper discusses several geometric characteristics of shared residential streets in Israel, where pedestrians and motor vehicles share the street space. In a shared street, drivers must reduce their speeds to below about 25kph, to remove or minimise conflicts between cars and pedestrians. Entrances to the street are narrowed to one lane, to reduce car speeds on entry. To keep car speeds low, the road alignment is bent into the form of a chicane. Trees, flower beds, benches, and children's play areas are provided, to make the street more attractive to residents. The design characteristics of the travelled street include: (1) straight sections with only one lane, and angled sections with two lanes, to allow passing; (2) respective recommended speeds of 25kph and 15kph for these sections; (3) recommended width of 3.25m to 3.75m for straight sections; and (4) recommended inclination angle of 45 degrees for angled sections. Vehicle paths along an angled section were examined using the Template computer design software. The mathematical design and calculation procedures are described. The authors consider that the resulting designs are safe, and allow consistently low speeds.
Abstract