Accurate methods of counting pedestrians are needed to quantify exposure for safety analysis, prioritize infrastructure improvements and safety programs, evaluate the benefits of pedestrian projects, develop models of pedestrian volumes, and track changes in pedestrian activity over time. However, pedestrian counts are still much less common than motor vehicle counts in most communities. In addition, existing count methodologies are notstandardized and rarely provide enough information to extrapolate to weekly, monthly, or annual volumes. This exploratory study presents a methodology for estimating weekly pedestrian intersection crossing volumes based on two-hour manual counts. The methodology, implemented in Alameda County, CA, involves a combination of manual and automated counts to determine weekly volumes. More than 690,000 pedestrians were counted during the 13-week study period. Manual counts were conducted at a set of 50 intersections. Automated counts from sidewalk locations in close proximity to a subset of 11 intersections were used to adjust these counts for time, surrounding land use characteristics, and weather conditions. The results of thisstudy demonstrate how pedestrian volumes can be routinely integrated intotransportation safety and planning projects.
Samenvatting