S224J - Effects of Road Engineering Modifications On Child Pedestrian Skills Development
Overview
Background & policy context:
It is well established that traffic calming significantly reduces casualties, particularly amongst vulnerable groups such as child pedestrians and cyclists. However, the effects of such environmental engineering measures on the development of safety skills, and their appropriate deployment are not well understood. Such measures may impact upon actual and perceived safety of an area as well as the development of road safety skills, and activity levels with perhaps children in traffic calmed areas being less attuned to hazardous road conditions than children travelling in other areas. The aim of the project was to look for any measurable differences in the skills of children travelling in different environments, which may indicate a need for additional training.
Objectives:
The objectives of the project were:
- To compare the road behaviour of children who have grown up in traffic calmed areas with those who have grown up in untreated areas;
- To assess whether the adaptations and cognitive rules developed in traffic calmed environments are sufficient to protect children in more dangerous environments;
- To try and relate any differences in child behaviour to the differences in road design and the differences in the behaviour of other road users in these areas.
Methodology:
The project was conducted in two phases. The first phase of the project reviewed the relevant literature and re-examined existing data on child pedestrian exposure in calmed and un-calmed areas, and gathered information for the design and implementation of an empirical study. The empirical study, which formed the second phase, compared the pedestrian skills and exposure of children growing up in traffic calmed area to those of children growing up in a nearby-untreated area. Pupils in schools local to each area were tested and their parents/guardians interviewed.
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