Disabled pedestrian level of service method for evaluating and promoting inclusive walking facilities on urban streets

peer reviewedCurrent analytical methods to estimate the pedestrian level of service (PLOS) usually only consider a narrow range of pedestrians and may not be applicable for more diverse pedestrian populations with different characteristics. The aim of this study is to conceptualize the disabled pedestrian level of service (DPLOS) for different street hierarchies not previously addressed to ensure inclusive walking conditions. An analytical point system comparing existing pedestrian facilities to a standard is proposed to estimate the DPLOS. Although this practical model is only used for one case study in Singapore, the use of international standards would make this model universally applicable. © 2013 American Society of Civil Engineers

Understanding the neighbourhood choice decisions of movers: An analysis of focus group discussions

Using a qualitative methods approach, this study explores the key factors that influence household neighbourhood choice. Three newly developed residential neighbourhoods have been studied to examine resident decision making around their neighbourhood preferences. Four focus group (n = 4) discussions with 29 individuals who were recent movers to the study areas were conducted to examine the reasons behind neighbourhood choice and the needs of the household. The results revealed that household neighbourhood choice decisions were multi-faceted and complex. The key findings can be classified into six categories: safety, residential environment, neighbourhood facilities, accessibility, economic and demographic factors. Residents emphasised that the combination of land-use and transportation planning may be one important part of multi-layered solutions to improve quality of life in residential neighbourhoods. © 2015 Penerbit UTM Press. All rights reserved

Pedestrian safety index for evaluating street facilities in urban areas

The majority of current evaluation methods for assessing pedestrian safety conditions on streets only consider limited facilities that cannot cover all of the safety needs of pedestrians with different ages and abilities. These models are not developed based on sufficient facilities at the micro-level. Several of these studies are limited to evaluating safety at intersections. However, pedestrians also require safety along street segments and in intersections. Accordingly, the objectives of this study are to conceptualize the pedestrian safety index (PSI), which evaluates facilities along the streets for pedestrians. To estimate this PSI, a point system method is proposed that compares existing conditions to a standard. This method can be used to identify existing problems and to propose improvements. In addition, the pedestrian safety enhancements described using this method can enhance the safety of older and disabled pedestrians that suffer the most from a lack of facilities. Although this practical model uses international standards to become universally applicable, one collector street in Singapore is chosen to test the model. Because this study tries to cover various street facilities, the designers can use these results to implement safe routes for pedestrians. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd

The relationship between urban street networks and the number of transport fatalities at the city level

There are factors that impact traffic safety and the number of accident-related fatalities, such as street users, environment, road design and vehicle characteristics, but there have been limited studies that examine the relationship between street network factors and traffic-related crashes and fatalities at the city level. Therefore, this paper focused on this relationship by introducing urban street network variables, such as blocks per area, nodes per selected areas and length of roads and motorways, as independent variables and the number of fatalities as the dependent variable. This study used Open Street Maps (OSM) and International Association of Public Transport (UITP) data from 20 cities around the world. The number of blocks per area and nodes per selected areas resulted from modifying and analyzing OSM maps in ArcGIS software. The strength of the relationship in this study was found using generalized linear modeling (GLM). The findings of this research indicated that increases in fatalities are correlated with an increasing number of blocks per area, number of nodes per selected areas and length of the motorways. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd

Analysing the Relationship Between Park-and-Ride Facilities and Private Motorised Trips Indicators

peer reviewedThe current trend towards sustainable transport planning has led to various studies seeking strategies to reduce private motorised trip externalities in urban areas, but few studies that consider the effectiveness of park-and-ride facilities have been conducted. This paper introduces two models developed to evaluate the relationship between urban travel modes factors and infrastructure factors such as park-and-ride facilities as independent variables and duration and percentage of daily trips by private motorised vehicles as dependent variables. A set of data from 36 cities in different parts of the world was used to examine this relationship in various contexts. The strength of the relationships was estimated by multiple linear regression analysis. Based on the relationships, park-and-ride facilities are not significant factors in reducing the duration and percentage of daily trips by private motorised vehicles. © 2014 King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals

An urban mobility index for evaluating and reducing private motorized trips

peer reviewedModern cities seek policies to sustain their urban mobility by reducing car externalities. To maintain sustainability, urban designers and planners should consider different social, economic, and environmental indicators. Currently, efforts are being made to evaluate the relationship between urban structure and car usage. However, few studies have been conducted to evaluate private motorized trips at the macro-level. This study attempts to create a foundation for evaluating private motorized trips at the city level by introducing an urban mobility index (UMI). UMI is a measure for evaluating transportation in cities at the macro-level. This research presents urban mobility indicators that are correlated to a percentage of daily trips made through private motorized modes in order to calculate UMI. An analytical point system comparing existing cities to the best existing value is proposed in order to estimate this UMI. This research employs the International Association of Public Transport (UITP) as a database. Although this method can be utilized for cities worldwide, this research uses it to assess Hong Kong and Chicago. This method can identify existing problems and can be used to propose solutions for reducing car usage. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

A pedestrian level of service method for evaluating and promoting walking facilities on campus streets

Modern universities seek policies to sustain the streets on their campuses by making campus streets pedestrian-friendly. To maintain inclusive streets, campus designers and planners should consider all users. Currently, there are efforts to evaluate street conditions for pedestrians. However, a limited range of pedestrian facilities and abilities make the results of previous studies insufficient to evaluate and promote inclusive walking facilities. This study attempts to create a foundation for evaluating and improving campus streets for pedestrians. This research presents pedestrian design indicators based on different guidelines that consider various pedestrian needs. This paper also introduces the pedestrian level of service (PLOS) for campuses, which is a measure to evaluate campus street facilities and infrastructure for pedestrians. An analytical point system comparing existing pedestrian facilities to a standard is proposed to estimate this PLOS. Although this method can be utilized on campuses around the world, this research uses it to assess streets on the campus of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). This method can identify existing street problems for pedestrians and can be used to propose improvements to existing campus streets. Since this study tries to serve all requirements of pedestrians, specifically vulnerable users whether old or disabled, designers have room to implement accessible routes for pedestrians in campus streets. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd

A Bicycle Safety Index for Evaluating Urban Street Facilities

Objectives: The objectives of this research are to conceptualize the Bicycle Safety Index (BSI) that considers all parts of the street and to propose a universal guideline with microscale details.Method: A point system method comparing existing safety facilities to a defined standard is proposed to estimate the BSI. Two streets in Singapore and Malaysia are chosen to examine this model.Results: The majority of previous measurements to evaluate street conditions for cyclists usually cannot cover all parts of streets, including segments and intersections. Previous models also did not consider all safety indicators and cycling facilities at a microlevel in particular. This study introduces a new concept of a practical BSI to complete previous studies using its practical, easy-to-follow, point system–based outputs.Conclusions: This practical model can be used in different urban settings to estimate the level of safety for cycling and suggest some improvements based on the standards. © 2015, Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

Addressing issues in the use of Google tools for assessing pedestrian built environments

Numerous techniques for collecting data are available to assess pedestrian built environment features. Recently, several studies favoured Google tools over conventional data collection techniques because they are more cost- and time-effective. The use of Google tools to assess pedestrian built environments remains in its early stages. Various challenges are encountered in assessing certain types of features and the intervals between the time of image/video capture and assessment. Thus, an in-depth study on the challenges of employing the Google tools is necessary. This study discusses the issues associated with the use of Google tools to assess pedestrian built environments and attempts to introduce new objectives for further tools and studies in this field to eliminate the aforementioned shortcomings of the existing tools. © 2018 Elsevier Lt

The equitable use concept in sidewalk design

Equitable use (EU) is the first principle of universal design and promotes the usefulness and marketability of products for people with diverse abilities. Sidewalks, as the main circulation path for pedestrian transportation, can be designed and assessed based on this principle to improve their usability for all pedestrians. Currently, there is no clear definition of EU in the sidewalk design criteria; consequently, no design and assessment guidelines are based on this concept. This study aims to remedy this shortcoming in knowledge by defining and translating the theoretical and conceptual components of the characteristics of EU for sidewalks. This study also attempts to identify the contributions of sidewalk design factors in the main dimensions of EU applied to sidewalks. To achieve these objectives, we conduct an extensive literature review of available universal design guidelines and handbooks as well as scientific articles regarding the implementation of EU in outdoor environments and sidewalks. The results of this review contribute to the development of conceptual models to define EU in sidewalk design. A questionnaire was administered to collect data to test the fitness of these conceptual models. Fitness tests are conducted with structural equation modelling (SEM). The EU translation can be useful for designing and assessing sidewalks to ensure that sidewalks serve people with various abilities on an equal basis. © 2018 Elsevier Lt