Evaluation of Different Curb Extension Treatments for Pedestrian Comfort and Safety at Intersections

Kumfer, Wesley; O’Brien, Sarah Worth; Vann, Mike; McNeil, Nathan; Kothuri, Sirisha; Song, Minju Kim · 2026 · ROSA P / District of Columbia. Dept. of Transportation

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Summary

This study evaluates the impact of different curb extension treatments—permanent, tactical, and tactical with mural art—on pedestrian safety and comfort at intersections in Washington, D.C. Motivated by the increasing adoption of low-cost, quick-build tactical treatments and the emerging trend of incorporating mural art, the research aims to determine how these geometric changes affect driver yielding behavior and pedestrian satisfaction compared to control locations without curb extensions. The study addresses a gap in rigorous, comparative evaluations of these specific treatments, particularly isolating the effects of mural art. The researchers employed a mixed-methods approach involving intercept surveys and video observations. Site selection included 15 treatment intersections (five for each curb extension type) and 10 control intersections, all featuring uncontrolled approaches to allow for the observation of yielding behavior. For the intercept survey, 180 pedestrians who had just completed crossings were surveyed at 10 of the treatment sites regarding their perceptions of safety, comfort, and satisfaction. For the video observation, the team reviewed 223 hours of footage from 25 intersections, coding 10,573 pedestrians and 1,396 yielding events where drivers were required to yield. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and logistic regression models to assess pedestrian satisfaction and driver failure-to-yield rates. The findings reveal distinct differences in user behavior and perception across treatment types. While all curb extensions successfully placed pedestrians closer to the street than control locations, permanent extensions resulted in the highest rate of pedestrians waiting within the extension area (84%), compared to 42–45% for tactical variants. However, pedestrians crossing from tactical curb extensions with mural art reported the highest crossing satisfaction (93%), significantly higher than those at tactical extensions without art (84%) or permanent extensions (71%). Regarding safety, video analysis showed that all curb extension types were associated with higher driver yielding rates than control locations. Specifically, tactical curb extensions with mural art had a statistically significant effect on decreasing the log odds of a driver’s failure to yield. Mural art locations also exhibited the highest yielding rates for near-side through and turning vehicles, while permanent extensions showed the highest yielding for far-side through vehicles. The study concludes that tactical curb extensions, particularly those enhanced with mural art, offer a feasible and effective alternative to permanent installations for improving pedestrian satisfaction and safety. The results suggest that while permanent extensions may encourage more consistent waiting positions, the aesthetic addition of mural art significantly boosts pedestrian comfort and positively influences driver yielding behavior. These findings support the use of tactical, quick-build treatments as viable strategies for transportation agencies seeking to enhance pedestrian environments with limited resources, provided that aesthetic elements are considered to maximize user satisfaction and safety outcomes.

Key finding

Tactical curb extensions with mural art significantly decreased the log odds of driver failure to yield and were associated with the highest pedestrian crossing satisfaction compared to permanent or standard tactical extensions.

Methodology

mixed_methods

Sample size: 180

Provenance

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Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant on 2026-06-10; verification: verified.

Topics

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• pedestrian behavior perception
• driver vru interaction