Locations with frequent pedestrian-vehicle collisions: Their transportation and neighborhood environment characteristics in Seattle and King County, Washington

Abstract

Improved pedestrian safety is integral to walkable, sustainable neighborhoods. This study aggregated 2,944 pedestrian-vehicle collisions in the Seattle- King County area using a 500 m2 grid overlay that captured related road and neighborhood characteristics. Collision cells were concentrated in 17.4 % of the extent, and 17.0 % of the collisions took place in high-frequency collision locations clustered in a 3.5 km2 area. A negative binomial model estimated that the frequency of collisions in grid cells correlated to higher volumes of vehicles and bus riders (boarding and alighting counts), higher intersection and traffic signal densities, higher densities of residential units and jobs, and several known pedestrian activity generators. These proxy measures of pedestrian activity and exposure to vehicles confirmed a lack of pedestrian safety in the metropolitan areas. The relatively small number of locations with high and very high pedestrianvehicle collisions should facilitate targeted, effective, and inexpensive pedestrian safety improvement programs.