The Role of Urban Form and Demographics in Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety
Project Description
One of the core objectives of the US Department of Transportation (USDOT) is to ensure safety for road users, including pedestrians and bicyclists. It is important to understand the differences in safety of such users in different contexts. This study uses data at the census tract level aimed to address transportation safety issues in different contexts characterized by comprehensive indicators of burdens that include the economy, environment, health, weather, and transportation.
A fundamental research question to be answered is whether the indicators, urban form (e.g., density, land use mix, alternative mode infrastructure), and demographics are correlated with higher levels of pedestrian and bicyclist crashes at the national and regional levels. When analyzing pedestrian and bicycle safety, the study will investigate the extent of differences regarding transportation safety and the presence of spatial heterogeneity and explore the safe systems interventions to effectively address vulnerable road user safety.
The study will create a unique large-scale dataset by combining ten years of fatal crash data with demographic information and indicators for the 72,000-plus census tracts in the US. The data will be analyzed using descriptives to understand data characteristics and distributions, time-series analysis to examine pedestrian and bicycle fatalities over time, and Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) to account for the spatial variations in relationships and enable insights into the spatially varying correlates of safety outcomes.
Outputs
1) A key outcome of this project is a Technical Report describing the creation of a unique large-scale pedestrian and bicycle safety database. The report will examine trends and dynamics over several years, reveal spatial and temporal changes in safety outcomes, and uncover localized relationships, focusing on urban forms, demographics, and community indicators.
2) New pedestrian and bicycle safety processes are to include: i) Integrated Spatial and Temporal Data and Analysis-guidance will be provided for creating pedestrian and bicycle safety databases and analyzing them at the local or regional levels. ii) Urban Form and Safety-establishing a process to examine urban design strategies, such as improvements needed in road configurations, land use patterns, and built environment features. iii) Demographic Analysis- systematically examining safety disparities across demographic groups and how to address them. iv) The predictive models will proactively identify areas at higher crash risk and suggest allocation of resources for safety improvements.
Overall, the research will create and analyze a large-scale safety database, emphasizing understanding of different community indicators, urban form and demographic factors and generating new processes for examining and addressing pedestrian and bicycle safety challenges. These processes will contribute to informed decision-making, targeted interventions, and develop more effective policies to enhance safety outcomes.
Outcomes/Impacts
1) Output: The study will create new knowledge about pedestrian and bicycle safety in different contexts characterized by urban forms/infrastructure variations and demographics.
2) Anticipated changes to the transportation system include implementing effective safety interventions at a localized level and assisting policymakers in allocating resources to improve safety.
3) The study will inform decisions related to transportation planning and policymaking. The role of safe systems initiatives will be explicitly considered in communities that can benefit most from such interventions. The policy framework will include targeted interventions based on localized safety analysis. The research can guide transportation agencies and policymakers in implementing infrastructure improvements in these communities, ensuring that safety interventions are prioritized where they are most needed. The research will lead to more informed resource allocation and improve safety outcomes.
4) Finally, the project will train students in research methods, and the insights gained from the research will inform education and training programs. Overall, by addressing pedestrian and bicycle safety challenges, the project will envision safe environments that prioritize the well-being of all road users.
Dates
06/01/2023 to 05/31/2024
Universities
University of Tennessee-Knoxville
Principal Investigator
Asad Khattak
University of Tennessee-Knoxville
akhattak@utk.edu
ORCID: 0000-0002-0790-7794
Daniel Rodriguez
University of California Berkeley
danrod@berkeley.edu
ORCID: 0000-0001-6550-5518
Christopher Cherry
University of Tennessee-Knoxville
cherry@utk.edu
ORCID: 0000-0002-8835-4617
Research Project Funding
Federal: $94,868
Non-Federal: $25,731
Contract Number
69A3552348336
Project Number
23UTK04
Research Priority
Promoting Safety