The Impact of Sidewalks on Vehicle-Pedestrian Crash Severity


  •  Mehrnaz Doustmohammadi    
  •  Niloufar Shirani Bidabadi    
  •  Sumalatha Kesaveraddy    
  •  Michael Anderson    

Abstract

Walking is a sustainable mode of transportation that has several benefits related to improved health and reducing traffic congestion. The drawback to walking as a mode of transportation is the increased potential to be involved in a severe crash, which is greater than when two automobiles are involved in a crash. This paper provides a statistical analysis of pedestrian crashes that occurred in two Alabama cities where the crashes are divided into those where a sidewalk was present and those where a sidewalk was not present. The goal of the paper is to determine the difference in crash experiences and variables that contribute to vehicle-pedestrian crashes associated with the presence of the sidewalk. The paper uses binary logistic regression to develop models of pedestrian crashes and evaluates the models to determine factors that contribute the pedestrian crashes. The paper concludes that pedestrian crashes often happen in the evenings, with low lighting and visibility levels, independent of the presence of sidewalks.



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