Jaywalking awareness

Jaywalking is a serious issue in urban settings, particularly when vehicles travelling over the speed limit reduce the pedestrian’s ability to check traffic in all relevant conditions. In Canada, between 2004 and 2005, 33% of pedestrians killed in traffic collisions where fault could be reasonably determined, committed an action that made them at least partly responsible for the crash. The most frequent at-fault pedestrian behaviour was crossing an intersection without the right-of-way (13%), followed by running into the roadway and being struck by a vehicle (5%) (Transport Canada, 2009).

Savolainen et al. (2011) evaluated two pilot enforcement programs that aimed to improve pedestrian safety in Detroit, Michigan by educating pedestrians on the proper use of crosswalks and the importance of obeying signals through the issuance or warnings. Separate targeted enforcement programs were carried out by the Detroit police department and Wayne State police department. Both programs demonstrated that targeted enforcement was effective at reducing pedestrian violations and that these reductions could be maintained for several weeks after active enforcement had ceased. The citywide program reduced violations by up to 17.1% during the enforcement period and by 7.8% several weeks after enforcement was completed. The enforcement program at Wayne State resulted in a 27% reduction in violations during the enforcement period and a 9.8% reduction after enforcement had ceased. The authors also noted that pedestrian compliance was strongly associated with the presence, quality and location of pedestrian facilities (e.g. pedestrian signals, crosswalks).

Van Houten et al. (2004) evaluated a driver-yielding enforcement program at crosswalks on two major corridors in Miami Beach, Florida. The program included decoy pedestrians, feedback flyers, written and verbal warnings, and saturation enforcement for a two-week period. Some publicity resulted from the enforcement efforts. The results of the study indicated that the two-week intensive enforcement program increased yielding to pedestrians at sites where enforcement was implemented. The increase was maintained for a year after the intervention with minimal additional enforcement. The intervention was also associated with an increase in drivers yielding to pedestrians at other crosswalks along the two corridors that did not receive enforcement, as well as at crosswalks with traffic signals.

Heinonen et al. (2007) cited research by Blomberg et al. (1983) on the impact of an educational video (Willie Whistle) that was developed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) as part of an education and awareness campaign that taught kindergarteners to third graders safe crossing practices. An evaluation of the campaign showed that dart and dash crashes involving four-to six-year old children decreased by 30% in the cities where the video was shown.

Zegeer et al. (2004) cited the impact of a follow-up educational film that provided street crossing advice to 9- to 12-year old children. The effectiveness of the film, which was developed by NHTSA and called And Keep On Looking (Preusser et al., 1988), was examined through testing in Connecticut, Seattle, and Milwaukee. A two-year test of the film’s effects in Milwaukee showed that the number of 9- to 12-year old pedestrians involved in crashes had decreased by 20%.

An annual survey that measured awareness of the Street Smart pedestrian safety campaign was carried out in Washington, DC between 2002 and 2012. The survey measured pre- and post-campaign observations about perceived risk, driver and pedestrian behaviours, and awareness of campaign messages and law enforcement activities. When compared with the findings of the 2002 survey, the results of the 2012 survey found that overall campaign awareness increased significantly (from 57% to 81%), observed dangerous behaviours decreased significantly (pedestrians who frequently jaywalk decreased to 33% from 40%, and drivers who frequently did not yield to pedestrians decreased to 23% from 37%), and awareness of police to enforce pedestrian traffic safety laws increased significantly (from 24% to 42%) (PROvuncular Research and Strategic Insight, 2012).

Scope of the Problem

• Transport Canada (2009). Fatally Injured Vulnerable Road Users in Canada, 2004-2006. Retrieved from http://ccmta.ca/images/pdf-documents-english/rsrp/STRID/VRU/tc_vru_report_april_09.pdf

Evidence

• Savolainen, P. T., Gates, T. J., & Datta, T. K. (2011). Implementation of targeted pedestrian traffic enforcement programs in an urban environment. Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, 2265, 137-145. Retrieved from http://trid.trb.org/view.aspx?id=1092371
• Van Houten, R., & Malenfant, J.E.L. (2004). Effects of a driver enforcement program on yielding to pedestrians. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 37, 351-363. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1284509/pdf/15529891.pdf
• Heinonen, J.A., & Eck, J.E. (2007). Pedestrian Injuries and Fatalities, Guide No. 51, Center for Problem Oriented Policing. Retrieved from http://www.popcenter.org/problems/pedestrian_injuries/print/
• Blomberg, R.D., Preusser, D.F., Hale, A. & W.A. Leaf. Experimental Field Test of Proposed Pedestrian Safety Messages (Report No. DOT-HS-806-521), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Washington, D.C., 1983. Retrieved from http://ntl.bts.gov/lib/25000/25600/25676/DOT-HS-806-521.pdf
• Zegeer, C.V., Stutts, J., Huang, H., Cynecki, M.J., van Houten, R., Alberson, B., Pfefer, R., Neuman, T.R., Slack, K.L., & Hardy, K.K. (2004). NCHRP Report 500, Volume 10, A Guide for Reducing Collisions Involving Pedestrians. Transportation Research Board of the National Academies, Washington, D.C. Retrieved from http://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/nchrp/nchrp_rpt_500v10.pdf
• Preusser, D.F., & Lund, A.K. (1988). And Keep on Looking: A Film To Reduce Pedestrian Crashes Among 9 to 12 Year Olds. Journal of Safety Research, 19(4), 1988, pp. 177-195.
• PROvuncular Research and Strategic Insight (2012). Street Smart Spring 2012 Campaign Survey Evaluation. Prepared for Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments. Retrieved from http://www.mwcog.org/uploads/committee-documents/ZV1dVllZ20120917155318.pdf