Signal Timing and Pedestrian Safety: A Case Study From Baltimore

Here’s a good way to get a sense of the importance a given city assigns to the well-being of pedestrians: press the “walk” button at an intersection. Then look at your watch.

It may not be a perfect measure, but there certainly seems to be a correlation in Baltimore. The signal timing at several intersections in the southeast part of the city is prompting outrage by citizens who say a deference to motorists makes pedestrians second-class street users and threatens their safety. Rebecca Smith, founder of the Downtown Baltimore Family Alliance, summarized the issue recently in a letter to the Baltimore Sun.

Crossing the road is dangerous in Baltimore thanks in part to crossing signals that force pedestrians to wait or run. Photo: Baltimore Sun

Meanwhile, Network blog Baltimore Spokes points out that pedestrians account for 42 percent of city traffic fatalities:

Smith and Baltimore Spokes are have requested that the offending signals be returned to their original timing. Secondly, Smith has requested that a walk signal be included in every sequence of signals, whether or not the button is activated. Finally, she asks that there be a countdown mechanism that gives pedestrians a clear sense of the timing of oncoming traffic.

Elsewhere on the Network today: Next Stop STL explains how the St. Louis region’s transit agency, Metro, played a critical role in the aftermath of the tornadoes that touched down Friday. PubliCola examines the claim of King County Executive Dow Constantine that anti-tunnel advocates in Seattle are attempting to force people to “abandon their cars.” And Grist comments on the irony of a sprawling development an hour-and-a-half outside Phoenix that is marketing itself as “green” by virtue of its rooftop solar panels.