Crossing Locations, Light Conditions, and Pedestrian Injury Severity

Abstract

This paper assesses the role of crossing locations and light conditions in the severity of pedestrian injuries through a multivariate regression analysis to control for many other factors that also may influence pedestrian injury severity. Crossing locations include midblock and intersections, and light conditions include daylight, dark with street lighting, and dark without street lighting. The paper formulates a theoretical framework on the determinants of pedestrian injury severity and specifies an empirical model accordingly. The paper applies the ordered probit model to the KABCO severity scale of pedestrian injuries that occurred while attempting street crossing in the years 1986–2003 in Florida. In terms of crossing locations, the probability of a pedestrian dying when struck by a vehicle is higher at midblock locations than at intersections for any light condition. The odds of sustaining a fatal injury are 49% lower at intersections than at midblock locations under daylight conditions, 24% lower under dark-with-street-lighting conditions, and 5% lower under dark-without-street-lighting conditions. Relative to dark conditions without street lighting, daylight reduces the odds of a fatal injury by 75% at midblock locations and by 83% at intersections, whereas street lighting reduces the odds by 42% at midblock locations and by 54% at intersections.