Physical separation of pedestrians

Fencing and gating can help separate pedestrians from roadway traffic and railroad tracks. It can be used as a barrier and to direct pedestrians along a safe route.

Retting et al. (2003) cited the results of before-and-after study by Stewart (1988) that examined the effect of pedestrian barriers (guardrails) on pedestrian safety. The results of the study showed that the installation of lower pedestrian barriers/fences that only partially blocked the motorist’s view of pedestrians were associated with a 48% decrease in pedestrian crashes. These results were considerably better than the 20% reduction in pedestrian crashes that occurred following the installation of fences that completely obstructed the motorist’s view of pedestrians. Children in particular benefited from the installation of lower pedestrian barriers because of their short stature.

Zheng et al. (2003) carried out a study on pedestrian behaviour using video cameras at 37 sites in London, England – 19 sites with pedestrian guard railing and 18 sites without. The objective of the study was to compare pedestrian movement characteristics in the presence of and lack of guard railing under varying traffic and pedestrian flow situations and to obtain information on the safety implications emanating from pedestrian behaviour in the presence or absence of guard railing. Three years of crash data were analysed at all study sites. Comparisons were made of the average number of annual crashes at sites with and without railing. All crashes involving pedestrians that occurred within 50 metres of the main pedestrian crossing were counted and used as safety indices of sites. The safety effect of guard railing was indicated by the pedestrian conflict rate and crash rate at the sites. The results of the analysis showed that conflicts at sites without railing were 1.2 times higher than that at sites with railing, and the pedestrian crash rate at sites without railing was 2.5 times that at sites with railing.

Physical separation of pedestrians from traffic can also be achieved through the construction of pedestrian overpasses or underpasses. The Institute of Transportation Engineers (2004) estimated that the construction of pedestrian overpasses/underpasses had the potential to reduce pedestrian crashes by 13% at unsignalized intersections and by 90%-95% at midblock locations (Institute of Transportation Engineers, 2004).

Zegeer et al., (2004) documented the findings of research on the effect on pedestrian crashes of the installation of 31 pedestrian overpasses in Tokyo, Japan. The results showed that the number of crashes that occurred within 100 metres of the overpasses was 91% lower during the 6-month period following installation than during the 6-month period prior to installation of the overpasses. The number of crashes within 200 metres decreased by 85%.

Zegeer et al. (2004) also cited the results of research on vehicle restriction/diversion measures in two European cities. In Uppsala, Sweden, streets were closed to vehicular traffic, one way flow was instituted on bypass routes, and bus only streets were implemented. The results showed that the probability of a pedestrian-vehicle collision resulting in personal injury decreased by 29% within the restricted area, but increased by 30% outside the restricted area. A study of street closures and other devices at 19 sites in London, England showed that pedestrian crashes decreased by 24%.

Cleghorn et al. (2009) documented best practices for improving pedestrian and motorist safety along light rail transit lines. The authors cited the use of pedestrian fencing and landscapes to channel pedestrian movements to designated crossing areas and to deter them from crossing at inappropriate locations, but noted that pedestrian-rail at grade crossing design was only effective if pedestrians actually crossed at the designated point and took a path that allowed them clear observation of the warning devices. Although quantitative information was not available on the safety impacts of this treatment, metropolitan areas in the United States that used fencing to channel pedestrian movements reported fewer concerns at these locations. The authors also cited the use of maze crossings, which include fencing or barriers designed to channelize pedestrian movements and force them to slow down and look in the direction of oncoming trains, thereby enhancing pedestrian awareness before crossing the tracks. Pedestrian swing or fence gates, which must be opened manually by pedestrians wishing to cross tracks, are another form of passive barrier protection that discourage pedestrians from making unsafe railway crossings. Cleghorn et al. (2009) noted that physical channelization was necessary for the effective installation of manual pedestrian swing gates.

Evidence

• Retting, R.A., Ferguson, S.A., & McCartt, A.T. (2003). A Review of Evidence-Based Traffic Engineering Measures Designed to Reduce Pedestrian-Motor Vehicle Crashes. American Journal of Public Health, September 2003, Volume 93, No. 9, Pages 1456-1463. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1447993/
• Stewart, D. (1988). Pedestrian guard rails and accidents. Traffic Engineering Control, 29:450-455. Retrieved from http://dougstewartonline.co.uk/pdfs/guardrails.pdf
• Zheng, P., & Hall, R.D. (2003). Pedestrian Guard Railing: A Review of Criteria for Installation. Transportation Research Group, University of SouthamptonRetrieved from https://www.tfl.gov.uk/cdn/static/cms/documents/pedestrian-guardrailing-review-of-criteria-for-installation.pdf
• Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) (2004). Toolbox of Countermeasures and Their Potential Effectiveness to Make Intersections Safer, Briefing Sheet 8. ITE, Federal Highway Administration, Washington, D.C. Retrieved from http://library.ite.org/pub/e26c7e9c-2354-d714-5181-4cc79fba5459
• Zegeer, C.V., Stutts, J., Huang,H., Cynecki, M., Van Houten, R., Alberson, B., Pfefer, R., Neuman, T., Slack, K.L., & Hardy, K.K. (2004). NCHRP Report 500, Volume 10: A Guide for Reducing Collisions Involving Pedestrians. Transportation Research Board, Washington, D.C. Retrieved from http://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/nchrp/nchrp_rpt_500v10.pdf
• Cleghorn, D., Clavelle, A., Boone, J., Masliah, M. & Levinson, H.S. Improving Pedestrian and Motorist Safety Along Light Rail Alignments. Transit Cooperative Research Program, Federal Transit Administration, TRCP Report 137, 2009. Retrieved from http://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/tcrp/tcrp_rpt_137.pdf