Role of Socio-demographic Characteristics in Evaluation of Signalized Crosswalks

Pedestrian static and dynamic characteristics have a great bearing on the quality of pedestrian facilities. The present study analyzes the effect of socio-demographic features on the pedestrian flow and crossing behavioral characteristics for the mixed traffic conditions at the signalized crosswalks. The data of 1000 pedestrians while crossing four signalized intersections were collected using videographic technique. The parametric variation in speed based on the gender, age-group, and the size of pedestrian group was also studied. The findings reveal that while crossing, males complied with the signals more than the females. In contrast, the study confirms that the crosswalk usability rate among females was more than the males. Further, strong association was found among various age-groups and group sizes of the pedestrians with respect to compliance with the traffic signal or adherence to the traffic rules. The crossing pattern preferred by young and middle-aged people was one-stage oblique crossing, whereas children and old-aged people preferred two-stage oblique crossing. These outcomes shall provide a strong base in the light of recent practices being adopted for designing pedestrian crossings at signalized crosswalks under mixed traffic conditions.