Walking is vital to the mobility of older road users for not only essential daily tasks but also social contacts and exercise. It follows that safe pedestrian travel also is an important factor in maintaining mobility for older road users. There is an urgent need to provide pedestrian-friendly road environments that are safe, convenient, and comfortable. This paper addresses the many issues associated with the safety of older pedestrians in five major sections. The first section provides an overview of the recent trends in pedestrian crashes, the causal factors related to pedestrian crashes, the types of crashes in which older pedestrians are involved, and the injury outcomes. The second section reviews pedestrian travel and crashes, the use of motorized wheelchairs, the involvement of alcohol, and seasonal effects on pedestrian travel and crash experience. Third, an examination of the associations among behavioral risk factors, crashes, and aging is provided. This section reviews the known risk factors for older pedestrians, with a focus on age-related changes in functional abilities that may increase the risk of collision. The fourth section identifies several factors that affect pedestrian crashes, including land use and road design, vehicle design, intelligent transportation systems, education, and enforcement. The section also provides suggestions for countermeasure development. The fifth section draws some conclusions on how to improve older-pedestrian safety through research and implementation.
Abstract