Pedestrian safety at intersections near light rail transit stations

The focus of this paper is two-fold—(1) to research and identify critical predictor variables such as road network and land-use characteristics that influence pedestrian safety at intersections near light rail transit (LRT) stations, and, (2) to examine the change in pedestrian crash patterns at these intersections before and after the LRT is in operation to serve the users. Pedestrian crashes, road network, and land-use characteristics within a vicinity of 0.25 miles (402 m) at 70 selected intersections near fifteen LRT stations in Charlotte, North Carolina were considered in this research. The predictor variables were examined to minimize multicollinearity and develop four different non-linear regression models. The findings from the three best models indicate that the number of bus stops, mixed use area, office area, single-family residential area, industrial area, and the presence of a railroad flasher have a statistically significant influence on the number of pedestrian crashes at an intersection near an LRT station. An increase in the total number of pedestrian crashes at the selected intersections near LRT stations was observed during the after-period compared to the before-period. The increase in the number of pedestrian crashes varied with the pedestrian crash history of the intersection.