Motor Vehicle-Pedestrian Collisions and Walking to School: The Role of the Built Environment

Abstract

WHAT'S KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT:Many studies have demonstrated that the built environment is related to both collision risk and walking to school. However, little research examines the influence of the built environment on the relationship between walking to school and pedestrian collision risk.WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS: Increased walking was not associated with increased pedestrian collision once the effects of the built environment and socioeconomic status were modeled. Safety was related primarily to the built environment and specifically features related to road crossing. abstract OBJECTIVES: Initiatives to increase active school transportation are popular. However, increased walking to school could increase collision risk. The built environment is related to both pedestrian collision risk and walking to school. We examined the influence of the built environment on walking to school and child pedestrian collisions in Toronto, Canada. METHODS:Police-reported pedestrian collision data from 2002 to 2011 for children ages 4 to 12, proportion of children walking to school, and built environment data were mapped onto school attendance boundaries. Collision rates were calculated by using 2006 census populations and modeled by using negative binomial regression.RESULTS: There were 481 collisions with a mean collision rate of 7.4/ 10 000 children per year. The relationship between walking proportion and collision rate was not statistically significant after adjusting for population density and roadway design variables including multifamily dwelling density, traffic light, traffic calming and 1-way street density, school crossing guard presence, and school socioeconomic status.CONCLUSIONS: Pedestrian collisions are more strongly associated with built environment features than with proportions walking. Road design features were related to higher collision rates and warrant further examination for their safety effects for children. Future policy designed to increase children' s active transportation should be developed from evidence that more clearly addresses child pedestrian safety. Pediatrics 2014;133:776-784

Influence of built environment on pedestrian crashes: A network-based GIS analysis

“…Our research suggests roads with greater population densities and higher proportions of residents taking public transits to work were associated with more pedestrian crashes. Road segments in these areas experience more pedestrians attributed to businesses and public transits (de Andrade et al, 2014;Rothman, Macarthur, To, Buliung, & Howard, 2014). Safety awareness campaign and traffic calming measures around these areas may improve road safety (Arien et al, 2013;Yannis, Kondyli, & Georgopoulou, 2014) although they were not examined here.…”

Direct observations of active school transportation and stroller use in kindergarten children

“…The relationship between socioeconomic status and AST has not yet been clearly defined as there have been mixed results reported (Rothman et al, 2013, Sirard and Slater, 2008, Davison et al, 2008). Finally, univariate analyses in our previous work demonstrated walking proportions were related to higher collision rates near schools; however, this relationship disappeared once we controlled for the built environment (Rothman et al, 2014). The small kindergarten sample did not allow us to investigate the role of the built environment in AST in this study.…”

National Safe Routes to School program and risk of school-age pedestrian and bicyclist injury

“…In a Toronto study investigating the association of the directly-measured proportion of children walking to school with overall child pedestrian injury risk, a statistically significant crude IDR of 3.5 reduced to 0.8 once the built environment was accounted for. 31 Manipulating the built environment has been called a “logical but often overlooked” area of injury control that may generate the most beneficial interventions. 32 Recommended actions include those that are commonly part of SRTS projects, such as separating play areas from roadways, improving visibility at intersections, establishing conspicuous stop signs, enhancing pavement markings, and improving lighting.…”