Countdown Pedestrian Signals: Legibility and Comprehension Without Flashing Hand

The purpose of this study was to examine differences in comprehension between the inclusion and elimination of the flashing "Don’t Walk" (FDW) on the pedestrian signal during the countdown phase. In Experiment 1, 300 people were shown, on a tablet, a digital video display of the walk symbol, the "Don’t Walk" symbol, the countdown pedestrian signal (CPS) plus the FDW, and the CPS alone. Results indicated that pedestrians were more likely to consider crossing if they judged they had enough time to cross with the CPS alone than with the CPS plus the FDW and that this effect held for males and females and across all age categories. Experiment 2 examined how well pedestrians could determine how much time they required to cross streets of various widths. Participants viewed a CPS and were told to start crossing when they felt they had just enough time to cross. Participants had little difficulty judging the time required for 40-ft, 60-ft, and 80-ft crossings. Most pedestrians could discriminate the time required without making significant changes in their walking speed. Another interesting finding was that pedestrians walked faster than typically reported in most studies in which they were timed starting at the onset of the walk. This is likely because pedestrians may walk more slowly when they know they have more than enough time to cross.

• Record URL:
  https://doi.org/10.3141/2519-02
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://www.trb.org/main/blurbs/174037.aspx
• Authors:
  • Van Houten, Ron
  • DeLaere, Gregory
  • Morgan, Justin F
  • Shurbutt, Jim
• Publication Date: 2015

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 10–16
• Monograph Title: Pedestrians
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board
  • Issue Number: 2519
  • Publisher: Transportation Research Board
  • ISSN: 0361-1981

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Comprehension; Flashing traffic signals; Legibility; Pedestrian clearance interval (Traffic signals); Pedestrian movement; Pedestrian safety; Traffic signal cycle
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01555600
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 9780309369626
• Report/Paper Numbers: 15-1671
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Feb 27 2015 10:04AM