A Resident's Guide for Creating Safe and Walkable Communities

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Chapter 3: How can the safety of my neighborhood be improved?

Engineering

Resource Sheet 7: Engineering Solutions to Improve Pedestrian Safety describes several potential engineering solutions and lists common concerns that your local agency or other residents may have.

Buffers can help separate pedestrians from motor vehicles and improve safety.

This section provides you with a list and definition of basic engineering solutions that may be used to improve pedestrian safety and accessibility in your community. These treatments range from constructing a sidewalk (to improve safety along the street), to adding median islands and installing pedestrian countdown signals (to improve safety while crossing the street). Any challenges related to design or implementation of each potential solution, in addition to the associated costs, should be considered. You should try to talk to people with transportation engineering expertise (for example, professionals with your local transportation department) so you can develop a better understanding of these approaches.

For More Information:

  • The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) guide PEDSAFE: Pedestrian Safety Guide and Countermeasure Selection System (http://www.walkinginfo.org/pedsafe) provides detailed descriptions of a range of treatments that may be used to improve pedestrian safety, in addition to cost information and other considerations.
  • The Institute of Transportation Engineers' (ITE) Web site and CD-ROM contain a public information video, It's Your Street: Making Traffic Improvements in your Neighborhood (http://216.12.138.81/default.asp), illustrating how a community worked together to reclaim their neighborhood from speeding cars and commuter cut-throughs.
  • Chapter 5 of the FHWA guide, How to Develop a Pedestrian Safety Action Plan (http://www.walkinginfo.org/library/details.cfm?id=229) describes improvements and provides information on costs.

Photos and more information about each of the improvements listed below can be found in the resources sheets, and comprehensive lists of engineering solutions can be found online (see sidebar for more information).

Typical engineering improvements

For More Information:

Most states have adopted a traffic calming guide, so look for one on your state department of transportation (DOT) Web site. Two resources about traffic calming for communities include:

Raised medians can make it safer and easier for pedestrians to cross wide streets.
  • Sidewalk—A paved walkway that allows pedestrians to walk along the roadway without interference from traffic.
  • Buffer or planting strip—A zone separating pedestrians on sidewalks from moving vehicles on the road.
  • Marked crosswalk—Areas on the street (delineated by paint, brick, etc.) indicating to pedestrians where they should cross the road.
  • Curb ramp or curb cut—A ramp providing a smooth transition between sidewalk and street.
  • Raised medians and crossing islands—The median is the area between opposing lanes of traffic. These provide pedestrians with a safe place to wait while crossing a street.
  • Curb extension—An extension of the sidewalk into the street that reduces the distance pedestrians must cross.
  • Traffic sign—An official device that gives a specific message, either by words or symbols, to the public. Examples are "stop," "yield," etc.
  • Traffic signal—A visual signal to control the flow of traffic. Pedestrian signals let pedestrians know when they have priority and warn drivers to stop/yield for pedestrians.
  • Traffic calming—Physical changes to a street to encourage drivers to drive slowly or to discourage cut-through traffic.
  • Road diet—Narrowing or eliminating travel lanes on a roadway to make more room for pedestrians and bicyclists.
  • Overpasses/underpasses—A street crossing separating pedestrians from motor vehicle traffic (i.e., bridge or tunnel).
  • Street lighting—This illuminates the roadway and intersections to help motorists see other motor vehicles and pedestrians crossing the roadway.
  • Temporary walkways—These provide pedestrians with designated routes along a construction site when sidewalks and other pedestrian travel ways have been closed.

For More Information:

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires that states and local governments have a plan (often called a transition plan) for upgrading existing facilities that do not meet the minimum requirements detailed by the U.S. Access Board. For more information, contact the U.S. Access Board: (http://www.access-board.gov), 800-872-2253 (voice), or 800-993-2822 (telecommunications device for the deaf).

Maintenance of pedestrian accommodations

Pedestrian accommodations, such as sidewalks, bus stops, lighting, and signals, need to be maintained. Neighbors can assist with landscaping maintenance on private property near sidewalks, as well as with snow and debris removal. Some communities have partnered with local businesses to develop an "Adopt a Bus Shelter" program, where businesses assist with maintaining the bus stops and clearing snow along the nearby pedestrian paths. The local transportation agency may have (or could establish) a sidewalk maintenance and improvement program. The program could include a periodic inventory of sidewalk conditions and responsibility for maintenance. Contact your local agency to determine if such a program exists, or where residents can go to request maintenance of pedestrian infrastructure.

Improving access to transit stops (including school bus stops)

An important destination for many pedestrians is the transit stop. Transit stops need to be safe and accessible for people of all abilities. Common transit concerns are:

  • There is no safe crossing to get to the bus stop.
  • There is no curb ramp or wheelchair access to the bus stop.
  • There is no sidewalk or path to easily get to the stop.

The location of a bus stop (e.g., if it comes before or after an intersection or is in the middle of the block) plays an important part in how safe and convenient it will be for bus riders to access. Transit agencies and school districts often choose bus stop locations based on where it is safe for the bus to stop, but they may not consider where pedestrians can walk safely and easily. To further complicate matters, road agencies—not transit agencies or school districts—usually have the responsibility of providing pedestrian accommodations near and at bus stops.

Many transit access problems can be addressed by the methods described in the previous section. In some cases, the transit agency or school district may need to review and modify their policies related to bus stop locations to ensure that pedestrian safety is adequately incorporated into the decision process. In either case, partnerships between community members, road agencies, and transit authorities or school districts are crucial in identifying concerns and working to improve conditions. If you have concerns about the bus stops in your community, contact your local road agency to find out who has jurisdiction over the roadway and pedestrian infrastructure in that area. You could also call the local transit agency or school district and encourage them to work more closely with the responsible road agency to make the needed improvements. School buses are often operated by school districts, individual schools, or contractors providing school bus service. Contact the school to find out who is providing service and who to call.

Community Success Story 6: Planning and Engineering Solutions for Pedestrian Safety

Cambridge, Massachusetts

Drawing of Cambridge, Massachusetts

In 2000, Cambridge unveiled its pedestrian plan, an effort toward removing the city from the list of metropolitan areas not meeting the federal Clean Air Act requirements. Recognizing that the automobile is the greatest single source of air, water, and land pollution and that the majority of trips in Cambridge are short trips most easily replaced by walking, the City undertook a plan to improve the walking environment. In addition to many innovative education campaigns, the City performed roadway redesign, sidewalk improvements and repairs, signal improvements, traffic calming projects, and installed crosswalks, lighting, and street furniture in priority spots across town.

Additionally, Cambridge developed a questionnaire to elicit residents' opinions of traffic-calming projects after their completion. Responses were used to improve future projects. Sidewalk maintenance has improved in the city, largely due to greater enforcement of local ordinances. The City requires property owners, for instance, to keep sidewalks clear of snow and ice and to trim vegetation; such early prevention reduces repair costs in the long run.

For more information, visit http://www.ci.cambridge.ma.us/cdd/et/ped/index.html.

Community Success Story 7: Safe Route to School Walking School Bus Program

Sacramento, California

At Natomas Park Elementary School in Sacramento, California, parents organize the "walking school bus," which includes five routes based on where children live, and a schedule for each stop. In order to participate, parents register their children ahead of time.

Children walking with safety signs and wearing safety vests.

Walk leaders include parents and employees from a local business. Each volunteer must have a background check prior to participation. Training for volunteers is provided by the parent leader and includes first aid, CPR, and pedestrian safety. While walking, volunteers wear safety vests and carry first aid kits.

To recognize the walkers' achievements, parent volunteers track the total number of miles walked during the school year and announce it at a year-end assembly.

About 50 children participate, and many more children are now seen walking to school. Organizers have recently expanded the activity to include remote sites where parents can drop off their children, and adult volunteers walk with the children the rest of the way to school.

Walking school buses are one of many ways in which parents and community members can participate in local Safe Routes to School Programs (SRTS). Most programs involve a variety of activities, including engineering improvements, education, enforcement, and encouragement. For other examples and models of SRTS activities, visit the National Center for Safe Routes to School Online Guide at http://www.saferoutesinfo.org/guide/case_studies/index.cfm.

 

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Program Contact

Tamara Redmon

202-366-4077

Dick Schaffer

202-366-2176

What's New

The FHWA Safety Office is continually developing new materials to assist states, localities and citizens in improving pedestrian and bicycle safety. The materials listed on this page were completed recently.

Examples of State/Local Pedestrian Safety Action Plans

Pedestrian Forum - Fall 2009

LTAP/TTAP Interchange, Tamara Redmon

Evaluation of the Focused Approach to Pedestrian Safety Program (PDF 225 KB)

“Not in Roadway” Pedestrian and Bicycle Crashes (PDF 132 KB)

How to Develop a Pedestrian Safety Action Plan (PDF 5.14 MB)

FHWA Guidance Memo Contains Provisions to Improve Pedestrian Safety

Toolbox of Countermeasures and Their Potential Effectiveness for Pedestrian Crashes

Pedestrian Safety Guide for Transit Agencies

Evaluation of Pedestrian Countermeasures in Three Cities: San Francisco, Las Vegas and Miami

Pedestrian Road Safety Audit Guidelines and Prompt Lists