Vulnerable road users: characteristics of pedestrians.

Pedestrians are vulnerable road users and comprise the largest single road user group. Walking is a major form of transport in urban areas and crossing a road is a key element in a journey on foot. A pedestrian network is part of the transport system and cannot be separated from it. Road crossing points are the critical links in a connected pedestrian network. Crossing the road is one of the most hazardous activities that a pedestrian can undertake as there is greater potential for conflict with the other road users.
This paper presents some of the findings from a literature review as part of the author’s Masters degree research report [1], the goal of which was to to discover how pedestrians negotiate the urban walking environment and describe some of the most important characteristics of pedestrian crossing behaviour in urban areas – information that traffic engineering practitioners can use for selecting the correct pedestrian facilities at appropriate locations.
The research project investigated pedestrian movement characteristics and crossing behaviour and compared results with the findings sourced from a literature review. The research involved reviewing the existing literature and conducting empirical research to study microscopic pedestrian flow characteristics.