Safe Street Crossings

The image above displays a zebra or ladder-style crosswalk that is elevated to slow traffic. Textured and colored bricks contrast with pavement to call attention to the crosswalk (see "special paving" for more information on colored pavement). A bulbout on the right-hand side extends the sidewalk and increases safety by shortening the crossing distance and moving the pedestrian waiting area into drivers' line of sight, as opposed to behind parked cars. (Photo credit: www.pedbikeimages.org / Michael Frederick)
This six-lane crossing is directly outside a high school. Picture how hazardous it would be without the crosswalk, signs, median, and traffic light. Fortunately, multiple precautions make the crossing safe. The ladder crosswalk striping is easier for drivers to see from farther away. A median refuge breaks up the crossing, allowing pedestrians to navigate one direction of traffic at a time with a safe place to wait in the middle. The median is angled so that pedestrians look toward oncoming traffic. Signs warn drivers that pedestrians may be present. The signal is a HAWK traffic signal, also called the Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon, which is not illuminated until a pedestrian presses the cross button. The light first flashes yellow, warning cars to slow down, and then comes to a solid red light. This is a great safety measure for an area with high automobile volumes because it only stops traffic when pedestrians are present. (Photo credit: www.pedbikeimages.org / Mike Cynecki)

Pedestrian Friendly Code Directory: Safe Street Crossings

Why is this important?

Pedestrians must be able to cross streets safely. More than 40% of pedestrian fatalities take place where no crosswalk is available. Often, marked crosswalks alone are insufficient to protect pedestrians, and additional infrastructure is necessary to make the crossing safe. In areas with long blocks, or where pedestrians use both sides of the street heavily, crosswalks located both in the middle and at the end of blocks are helpful.

Mid-block crossings can be particularly dangerous because drivers may not anticipate or see pedestrians. Dangerous crossings can be made safer by installing features like signals, signage, crosswalk striping, flashing beacons or pedestrian-activated traffic signals, curb extensions or bulbouts, and median refuges.

There are additional safety considerations for crossings. Ramps and curb cuts leading to crossings should feature high-contrast detectable warning strips to alert pedestrians, particularly those who may be vision-impaired, that they are approaching traffic. Bus stops should be located after crosswalks so that transit riders crossing the street for a bus stop won’t be hit by a bus, and so that stopped buses don’t block drivers’ view of pedestrians in crosswalks.

Code Examples

Aurora’s code calls for mid-block pedestrian crossings.  It appears in the context of a series of provisions providing for safe crossings at intersections and mid-block locations. Those provisions include a hierarchy of crosswalk treatments, signage requirements, and other features.

The code section here specifies that curb extensions, or bulbouts, should be considered to increase the safety of mid-block crossings where there is heavy use by pedestrians and bicyclists, particularly where blocks are long, and retail or other attractions line both sides of the street.  However, because of the particular dangers to pedestrians of multilane mid-block crossings, Aurora’s code discourages such crossings except where there is a signal.

The code from Kansas City, MO calls for mid-block crossings for blocks longer than 900 feet.  The code specifies that crossings should be 10 feet in width, but provides for no other safety features.  While this code is an important start, it is likely to leave popular crossing spots unregulated, and does not specify steps to ensure that mid-block crossings are safe

Subdivision Code
Kansas City, Mo., Code of Ord. Ch. 66, art. IV, 66-124(a)(2) (2009).

Pedestrian ways or crosswalks not less than ten feet in width shall be provided near the center and entirely across any block which is 900 feet or more in length where deemed essential in the opinion of the city plan commission to provide adequate pedestrian circulation or access to schools, shopping centers, churches, parks or transportation facilities. At the time of preliminary plat approval, this requirement may be modified in an instance where this access is adequately served otherwise.

Urban Street Standards: Mid-Block Crossing
Aurora, Colo., Mun. Code ch. 126, art. II, § 126-36.5(V)(G)(2)(g) (2009), subsequently revised.

Mid-block crossings with curb extensions should be considered at locations where a substantial number of pedestrians or bicyclists attempt to cross streets regardless of the presence of protection or identification of the crossing. These circumstances typically occur in locations with pedestrian attractions on both sides of a roadway, in areas with a combination of street-facing retail shops and on-street parking, and the presence of long blocks (i.e., blocks of 600-feet or greater). Mid-block crossing will only be applied to limited locations and will be analyzed on a case by case basis. Multilane un-signalized controlled mid-block crossing should be avoided.