ASSESSMENT OF PEDESTRIAN ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOR IN SUBURBAN ENVIRONMENTS

Suburban area pedestrianism was examined from the points of view of the walking and nonwalking public. Nine case studies were conducted to determine the role of walking as an exclusive mode of travel. The sites examined comprised the 3 major types of pedestrian facilities: overpasses, tunnels, and at-grade crossings. Locations where new pedestrian facilities are anticipated also were examined. In each case, linkages between land uses were established to define reasons for local travel. The data then were analyzed to show how pedestrian facilities act to sustain the linkages. Various pedestrian characteristics were found to be related to walking activity. For example, age has a direct bearing on walking behavior, and children constitute the largest walking group. Acceptable walking distance of up to 0.25 mile (0.4 km) were given for adults. Distances of up to 1 mile (1.6 km), however, offer little impedance to children. Along with distance, fear of attack is a primary impedance to potential adult walkers, especially women. Overpasses were cited as the most desirable pedestrian accommodation to bypass traffic. The public showed little enthusiasm for tunnels because of the mischief they attract. People have also shown that, if the reason exists, they will cross heavy traffic to travel by foot. The results of this study given general principles for successful pedestrian planning in suburban areas, and they support the idea of combined pedestrian and bicycle ways.

• Record URL:
  • http://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/trr/1975/540/540-005.pdf
• Summary URL:
  • https://scholar.google.com/scholar_lookup?title=ASSESSMENT+OF+PEDESTRIAN+ATTITUDES+AND+BEHAVIOR+IN+SUBURBAN+ENVIRONMENTS&author=M.+Demetsky&author=M.+Perfater&publication_year=1975
• Availability:
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• Supplemental Notes:
  • Publication of this paper sponsored by Committee on Pedestrians. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
• Authors:
  • Demetsky, Michael J
  • Perfater, Michael A
• Conference:
  • 54th Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board
  • Location: Washington District of Columbia
  • Date: 1975-1-13 to 1975-1-17
• Publication Date: 1975

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 46-55
• Monograph Title: Urban Accident Patterns
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Record
  • Issue Number: 540
  • Publisher: Transportation Research Board
  • ISSN: 0361-1981

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Age; At grade intersections; Bikeways; Human characteristics; Land use; Overpasses; Pedestrian tunnels; Pedestrians; Planning; Walking
• Old TRIS Terms: Pedestrian characteristics
• Subject Areas: Highways; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Planning and Forecasting; Safety and Human Factors; Society; Terminals and Facilities;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00126826
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 0309023939
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Dec 16 1975 12:00AM