Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Streetsblog

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:

Seriously, don’t walk in Baltimore. We have the highest count of pedestrians in traffic crashes of any other county.

Pedestrian signal timing is such that you can’t cross when the signal is green for cars and you can’t cross when the signal is red. Then, finally you have four seconds to get across the road, that is assuming you pressed that button.

Like Rebecca we are wondering where the City’s Complete Street Policy is in all this.

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.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

‘Preventable’: Hit-and-Run Driver Kills Two on Third. Ave Corridor Eric Adams Refuses to Make Safer

A motorist struck and killed two men on a strip where Mayor Adams recently shelved a safety redesign amid a backlash from local business interests.

July 11, 2025

Why No BRT For NYC? Two New Reports Tackle Why Your Bus Service Sucks

Years of bus priority projects barely made a dent in speeds because Big Apple leaders won't install real bus rapid transit, two recent reports argue.

July 11, 2025

Citi Bike Riders Are Pissed About Eric Adams’s 15 MPH Speed Limit

Citi Bike's new 15 mph max speed limit is a bad deal for riders and a potential threat to safety, riders said.

July 11, 2025

Friday Video: Cyclists, Check Out Your Next City

Streetfilms' Clarence Eckerson visited London earlier this summer to check in on the Big Smoke's cycling revolution.

July 11, 2025

Friday’s Headlines: Just the News Edition

We've got one more workday before we can hit the beach. Plus the news.

July 11, 2025

Council To Close Instacart Loophole, Pass Delivery Industry Regulation Bills

The City Council will vote on Monday to close the "Instacart loophole" and force all app companies to pay workers a minimum wage.

July 10, 2025
See all posts