A Literature Review and Research Agenda for Understanding and Addressing Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety

Abstract

Background This paper builds on the research agenda accompanying the university transportation center (UTC) proposal to create the Center for Research on Safe Walking, Active Living, and Cycling (CROSWALC), with a specific focus on the needs of pedestrians and bicyclists including the young, the elderly, and the disabled. Methods As part of a collaborative effort over Spring 2016 to create a University Transportation Center focused solely on pedestrian and bicycle safety, this paper presents a research agenda from researchers spanning engineering, planning, behavior and law enforcement. This paper represents collaboration between colleagues from San Diego State University, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Safe Transportation Research and Education Center (SafeTREC) at the University of California-Berkeley, University of Tennessee, and CSU SLO. This paper also represents feedback and validation from several events at the January 2017 Transportation Research Board conference in Washington DC. Results The resulting research agenda is designed to help both researchers and professionals build a detailed understanding of active travel safety issues and devise innovative yet practical solutions to these issues. The paper focuses on describing key research questions in four related topic areas ( Behavior and Exposure ; Safety Data and Modeling ; Planning, Design and Engineering ; and Innovation and Technology ) all organized under two overarching dimensions designed to help policymakers and practitioners 1) understand the safety problem ( Building Problem Understanding ), and 2) help them devise effective solutions to the safety problem ( Problem Solving ). (For this conference submission we chose the “Additional, specific topic areas” track, as our research agenda combines the two main tracks of the conference related to Problem Understanding and Problem Solving. ) Conclusions The purpose of this paper is to help shape global priorities around safety for pedestrians and cyclists and to guide funding toward improved understanding and targeted solutions for these vulnerable travelers. This paper is motivated and informed by peer-reviewed literature, and draws from the authors’ collective experiences in pedestrian and bicycle safety analysis and problem solving. The four areas presented here are comprehensive and would resonate with most academics and professionals working to both understand pedestrian and bicycle safety issues, and then develop effective solutions. Understanding, promoting, and accommodating walking and cycling is perhaps one of the most critical components of the long-term sustainability, equity, and health of our world’s communities.