Racial Bias in Driver Yielding Behavior at Crosswalks

Racial minorities are disproportionately represented in pedestrian traffic fatalities, indicating a significant public health and safety issue. Psychological and social identity-related factors have previously been shown to influence drivers’ behaviors toward pedestrians. If drivers’ behavior reflects racial bias and results in differential behavior toward Black and White pedestrians, this may lead to disparate pedestrian crossing experiences based on race and potentially contribute to disproportionate safety outcomes. The authors tested this hypothesis in a controlled field experiment at an unsignalized midblock marked crosswalk in downtown Portland, Oregon. Six trained male research team confederates (3 White, 3 Black) simulated an individual pedestrian crossing, while trained observers cataloged the number of cars that passed and the time until a driver yielded. Results (90 pedestrian trials, 168 driver-subjects) revealed that Black pedestrians were passed by twice as many cars and experienced wait times that were 32% longer than White pedestrians. Results support the hypothesis that minority pedestrians experience discriminatory treatment by drivers.

• Record URL:
  http://ppms.otrec.us/media/project_files/TRF_Crosswalkpaper_Final.pdf
• Record URL:
  http://ppms.trec.pdx.edu/media/project_files/NITC-SS-733_Racial_Bias_in_Driver_Yielding_Behavior_at_Crosswalks.pdf
• Record URL:
  http://ppms.trec.pdx.edu/media/project_files/NITC_869_Racial_Bias_in_Drivers_Yielding_Behavior_5YnmTku.pdf
• 
• Supplemental Notes:
  • This document was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation, University Transportation Centers Program.
• Corporate Authors:

  Portland State University

  School of Urban Studies and Planning, P.O. Box 751
  Portland, OR  United States  97207-0751

  University of Arizona, Tucson

  Tucson, AZ  United States  85721

  Oregon Transportation Research and Education Consortium

  P.O. Box 751
  301A Engineering Building
  Portland, OR  United States  97207

  Research and Innovative Technology Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Goddard, Tara
  • Kahn, Kimberly Barsamian
  • Adkins, Arlie
  • 0000-0001-5613-4372
• Publication Date: 2014

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; References;
• Pagination: 16p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Behavior; Crosswalks; Discrimination; Drivers; Field tests; Pedestrian safety; Pedestrians; Persons by race and ethnicity; Yielding
• Geographic Terms: Portland (Oregon)
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors; I83: Accidents and the Human Factor;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01527164
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: UTC, TRIS, RITA, ATRI, USDOT
• Created Date: May 30 2014 3:33PM