Safety Effectiveness of HAWK Pedestrian Treatment

Abstract

The high-intensity activated crosswalk (HAWK) device is a pedestrian-activated beacon located on the roadside and on mast arms over the major approaches to an intersection. It was created in Tucson, Arizona, and at the time of this study was used at more than 60 locations. The HAWK head consists of two red lenses over a single yellow lens. It shows a red indication to the motorists when activated, which creates gaps for pedestrians to use to cross the major roadway. A before-and-after study of the safety performance of HAWK devices is documented. The evaluations used an empirical Bayes method to compare the crash prediction for the after period had the treatment not been applied with the observed crash frequency for the after period with the treatment installed. Crash types examined included total, severe, and pedestrian crashes. The evaluation used data for 21 HAWK sites and 102 reference sites and found the following changes in crashes after the HAWK beacon was installed: between 13% and 29% reduction in all crashes and approximately 50% reduction in pedestrian crashes.