Safe Streets, Livable Streets

Dumbaugh, Eric; Gattis, J. L. · 2005 · OpenAlex-citations

DOI: 10.1080/01944360508976699

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Summary

This paper addresses the conflict between conventional transportation safety practices and the design of "livable" urban streets. Conventional engineering guidelines, such as those from AASHTO, prioritize "passive safety" by mandating clear zones free of fixed objects like trees to protect errant motorists. This approach discourages streetscape features that enhance pedestrian livability. The author argues that this philosophy is flawed because it ignores the relationship between road design and driver behavior, potentially encouraging speeding and risky driving. The study investigates whether livable streetscape treatments, such as street trees and on-street parking, actually compromise safety or if they enhance it by inducing more cautious driver behavior. The research employs a mixed-methods approach, beginning with a review of existing literature and historical design philosophies. It highlights empirical studies suggesting that wider lanes and clear zones can increase crash frequencies by encouraging higher speeds. The core of the study is an empirical test comparing two 0.9-mile segments of Colonial Drive in Orlando, Florida, over a five-year period (1999–2003). The "livable" section featured narrower 11-foot lanes, on-street parking, and roadside trees offset only 1.5 to 2 feet from the curb. The "comparison" section featured wider 12.5-foot lanes, paved shoulders, and a 15-foot clear zone. Both sections had similar traffic volumes, lane counts, and median widths, allowing for a controlled comparison of safety performance based on crash data. The findings demonstrate that the livable section was significantly safer than the comparison section across all metrics. The livable segment recorded 11% fewer total mid-block crashes, 31% fewer injurious crashes, and zero fatalities, compared to six fatalities on the comparison section. Pedestrian and bicyclist injuries were also lower on the livable section, attributed to the buffering effect of parked cars and trees. Contrary to passive safety assumptions, the livable section did not experience a higher rate of crashes involving fixed objects; it recorded fewer roadside object-related injuries than the comparison section. Additionally, the livable section performed better than the broader urban and suburban baseline for the roadway, reporting fewer crashes per mile and per vehicle mile traveled. The significance of these findings lies in challenging the dominant passive safety paradigm in transportation engineering. The study concludes that design features promoting livability, such as narrowed lanes and roadside amenities, can enhance overall safety by self-regulating driver speeds and increasing caution. The author advocates for an alternative design approach that accounts for the dynamic relationship between road geometry and driver behavior, suggesting that integrating pedestrian-friendly features does not necessitate a trade-off with motorist safety. This implies that urban planning and transportation engineering should align to support both livability and safety, rather than treating them as conflicting objectives.

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• urban rural setting