While bike riders are acutely aware of the risk that distracted drivers pose to a safe journey, less attention has been paid to whether distracted pedestrians are a risk to other road users and themselves.
It has been obvious to riders in recent years that pedestrians on trails and road crossings appear to be glued to their mobile phones, and it is true that pedestrian-vehicle collisions, including those with bikes, have been increasing significantly.
But it has been argued that this rise is not a consequence of the distracted walker, but mostly attributable to a decline in driver attention.
New research from the University of British Columbia (UBC) in Canada, which analysed actual pedestrian interactions with vehicles on busy streets, concludes that distracted pedestrians face higher safety risks compared with undistracted road users.
Rather than use crash data to evaluate the risks and consequences of pedestrian distraction, the study used a computer vision system developed at UBC and artificial intelligence simulation models to analyse video traffic data from two busy intersections in Vancouver.
The study, published recently in Accident Analysis and Prevention, found that distracted pedestrians often remained unaware of their surroundings, making fewer adjustments to their path or speed, which decreased their overall navigational efficiency.
This level of distraction can increase the severity of vehicle interaction and near misses by 45%.
Analysis focused on distracted pedestrians – those texting, reading a phone, talking on the phone or listening to music – undistracted pedestrians, and traffic conflicts, or situations in which road users, such as vehicles and pedestrians, were on a collision course and so, at risk of a collision.
“Non-distracted pedestrians made safer choices when interacting with vehicles,” says lead researcher Dr Tarek Sayed, a civil engineering professor and transportation safety expert.
“They maintained greater distances from vehicles, yielded more frequently to oncoming traffic and adjusted their speed when necessary.”
The researchers also noted differences in driver behaviour. Drivers often decelerated when approaching distracted pedestrians, indicating they recognised the increased risk posed by their unpredictable movements.
The authors suggest that sensor-based alert systems could help minimise distraction in high risk zones.
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