Study: Crosswalk Lighting Radically Improves Pedestrian Safety

A new study from the Insur­ance Insti­tute for High­way Safe­ty empha­sizes the impor­tance of cross­walk light­ing for pedes­tri­an safe­ty, reports Dan Zukows­ki in Smart Cities Dive.

The study ana­lyzed four inter­sec­tions in Kala­ma­zoo, Michi­gan. “At these inter­sec­tions, none of which had traf­fic sig­nals, researchers found that dri­vers slowed where flash­ing bea­cons or any type of light­ing were present, but a com­bi­na­tion of flash­ing bea­cons and cross­walk light­ing trig­gered by the pedes­tri­an result­ed in the high­est yield­ing behav­ior.” At one dim­ly lit site, flash­ing bea­cons and cross­walk light­ing made dri­vers 13 times more like­ly to yield to pedes­tri­ans.

The study high­lights how sim­ple, rel­a­tive­ly inex­pen­sive fix­es can help stem the epi­dem­ic of traf­fic deaths fac­ing most U.S. com­mu­ni­ties. Accord­ing to IIHS Pres­i­dent David Harkey, “We can stop pedes­tri­ans from being killed if we make sure dri­vers see them — but first city plan­ners and road design­ers have to see the light.”