Dive Brief:
- The most dangerous part of a transit bus ride is getting to and from the bus stop, according to research conducted by the University of Tennessee-Knoxville for the Center for Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety.
- Passengers may need to cross the road to or from the bus stop, where infrastructure such as crosswalks and pedestrian signals may influence safety, said Allison Rewalt, a graduate research assistant in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the university, during a March 25 webinar.
- The research revealed that pedestrian crashes were about five times more likely to be related to a transit bus stop than pedestrian collisions at intersections.
Dive Insight:
Transit buses are among the safest travel modes for passengers. “However, this figure primarily refers to the time spent inside the transit vehicle, and it doesn't include the walk to and from transit,” Rewalt said.
The researchers, led by Candace Brakewood, an associate professor at the university, reviewed previous studies, data from the federal Fatality Analysis Reporting System and Pedestrian and Bicycle Crash Analysis Tool and the Minnesota Department of Transportation.
The Minnesota data of 38 crashes showed that 43% occurred while people were walking to or from the transit stop. Although the sample size was small, Rewalt said they read each crash narrative from the reporting law enforcement officer and used Google Street View to understand the context of each crash better.
Nearly 80% of crashes occurred at bus stops along higher-speed arterial roadways. Among all collisions, “The action of the pedestrian prior to the crash was significant,” Rewalt said. More than 56% of collisions occurred when the pedestrian was walking in the road travel lane, while more than 16% occurred in crosswalks.
The report recommends improving access and visibility for crosswalks near transit stops, addressing issues that lead to collisions at midblock bus stops and implementing measures to reduce crashes along roadways with speed limits above 30 mph.
“Safe access to bus stops is paramount to realizing the full safety benefits of transit in the United States,” Rewalt said.
