Driver and Pedestrian Behavior at Uncontrolled Crosswalks in Tahoe Basin Recreation Area of California

For more than 30 years, pedestrian safety studies have considered pedestrian–vehicle collision patterns and pedestrian and driver behavior at marked and unmarked crosswalks at uncontrolled crossings. Recent research in this area, conducted by the University of California, Berkeley, Traffic Safety Center on behalf of the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), was designed to fill key gaps in the literature by analyzing driver and pedestrian behavior and knowledge of right-of-way laws for marked and unmarked crosswalks. The Caltrans study, as with most previous crosswalk studies, focused on urban and suburban areas (in this case, the San Francisco, California, Bay Area), where driver and pedestrian characteristics do not change significantly from day to day. After this study came the recognition that similar research was needed in rural and recreational locations, where the population frequently changes. As such, this paper summarizes results from field observations of driver and pedestrian behavior at marked and unmarked crosswalks at uncontrolled crossings during the summer in the Tahoe Basin of California. This study, also funded by Caltrans, concludes that the behavior trends identified in the study of urban and suburban areas in the Bay Area are largely similar in a rural and recreational context. This finding is significant for Caltrans, a statewide agency that is seeking to provide a consistent crosswalk installation and treatment policy for its facilities across California. Other regional and state agencies may similarly benefit from the findings of the study.

• Record URL:
  https://doi.org/10.3141/2198-04
• Summary URL:
  http://scholar.google.com/scholar_lookup?title=Driver+and+Pedestrian+Behavior+at+Uncontrolled+Crosswalks+in+Tahoe+Basin+Recreation+Area+of+California&author=M.+Mitman&author=D.+Cooper&author=B.+DuBose&publication_year=2010
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://www.trb.org/Main/Blurbs/Pedestrians_2010_165054.aspx
• Authors:
  • Mitman, Meghan Fehlig
  • Cooper, Douglas
  • DuBose, Brooke
• Publication Date: 2010

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 23-31
• Monograph Title: Pedestrians 2010
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board
  • Issue Number: 2198
  • Publisher: Transportation Research Board
  • ISSN: 0361-1981

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Behavior; Crosswalks; Drivers; Field studies; Pedestrians; Right of way (Traffic); Rural areas; Unsignalized intersections
• Candidate Terms: Unmarked crosswalks
• Geographic Terms: Lake Tahoe Basin
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; I73: Traffic Control;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01150434
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 9780309160742
• Report/Paper Numbers: 10-2965
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Feb 19 2010 10:57AM