Pedestrians show an increased vulnerability in crash situations. The higher shares of children (0-14 years) and elders (? 65 years) in this road user group and their particular behaviors intensify this issue. There is an assumption that different age groups and the distraction e. g. by electronic devices lead to different behaviors. The safety relevance of distraction and other crash contributing factors were analyzed. Traffic safety and behavior of pedestrians were analyzed together in a more fundamental analysis, with a specific focus on infrastructure, street environment, person characteristics and conflict opponent. The study is focused on crossing situations on urban main roads with speed limits of 50 km/h along links outside of main intersections. The research topic was covered with numerous different methods like macroscopic crash analysis of accident statistics, network analysis on spatial distribution of pedestrian crashes, analysis of pedestrian volumes detailed by crossing and longitudinal traffic also in combination with pedestrian crashes, single site analysis of crashes, behavioral observations as well as pilot studies on quantitative analysis of conflict parameters and tracking of single pedestrian routes. For a sample of 82 sites complemented by 24 sites from external publications features regarding street space, position in the network and expositions parameters for pedestrian, cyclist and motorized traffic volumes were combined and analyzed. For 8 sites a detailed behavioral observation of the safeguarding that pedestrians show before and during the crossing situation was conducted. Conspicuities in crash situations and traffic behavior of pedestrians were identified. This included a prioritization of conflict situations as well as crash supporting factors. The research project documentation closes with a compact discussion about recommendations for road infrastructure design as well as education and information for pedestrians. (Author/publisher)
Abstract