Abstract
Slowing traffic speed in urban areas has been shown to reduce pedestrian injuries and fatalities due to automobile accidents. This research aims to measure how brick and granite block paving materials, which were widely used historically prior to the use of asphalt paving in many cities, may influence free flow traffic speed. Traffic speeds for 690 vehicles traversing street blocks paved with asphalt, granite block, and brick materials were measured using a radar gun on a sample of 18 matched pair (asphalt and historic paving material) street blocks in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Fixed effects linear regression was used to estimate the effect of paving material on vehicle speed after controlling for the street class (e.g., arterial versus local road) and the matched pair. Results indicate that brick reduced speeds by approximately 3 mph (~5 km/h) and granite block reduced speeds by approximately 7 mph (~11 km/h), as compared to asphalt paved city streets, which we attribute to drivers intentionally slowing due to road roughness. This research suggests that brick and granite block paving materials may be an effective traffic calming strategy, having implications for reducing negative health outcomes associated with pedestrian–automobile collisions.
Highlights
Injuries and fatalities due to motor vehicle accidents remain a serious public health issue across the globe
The number of vehicle speed observations per matched pair of street blocks ranged from 28–40, with 341 (50%), 153 (22%), and 196 (28%) observations occurring for asphalt, brick and granite block, respectively
We ascribe this reduction in speed for streets paved with historic paving materials to the increase in road roughness associated with brick and granite block road surface as compared to asphalt
Summary
Injuries and fatalities due to motor vehicle accidents remain a serious public health issue across the globe. While brick and granite block paving materials are currently used in cities and towns across the world, in many cities in the US and elsewhere they often exist as historic artifacts, as for most cities, the use of brick and granite block paving materials was discontinued after the introduction of asphalt paving in the late 19th century. Even in these cities, brick and granite block paving surfaces often remain distributed piecemeal throughout the urban fabric, continuing to serve as part of the urban transportation infrastructure
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