What affects pedestrian street crossing decisions in day and night scenarios? A case study in Charlottesville, Virginia

Pedestrian crashes and fatalities are increasing, particularly in urban areas and at nighttime. Although previous studies have examined pedestrian crossing behavior, most have not considered pedestrians’ safety perceptions and behavioral variables that may affect crossing decisions at different times of the day. This paper uses a combination of perceived safety, gaze variability, and sociodemographic data to analyze how crossing decisions differ in day and night scenarios. 63 participants walked along an urban street in Charlottesville, Virginia in the United States, where they could choose to cross anywhere along a four city-block corridor. Eye-tracking glasses were worn by participants to obtain gaze data, and surveys before and after the experiment collected sociodemographic and perceived safety data. Results show pedestrians’ perceived safety and lighting conditions may influence their decisions to cross at certain intersections, as do their walking habits, preferred travel mode, and sociodemographic characteristics. Pedestrians’ gaze variability immediately prior to crossing was higher at night compared to daytime, and increased at locations where pedestrians indicated feeling unsafe or uncomfortable. Due to increased perceptions of safety risk and discomfort at night (which is often related to insufficient lighting), pedestrians’ crossing decisions are more varied, as perception of risk is influenced by individual characteristics like age and gender. This study contributes to the existing knowledge on pedestrian crossing behavior by focusing on user-centric perceived safety and gaze data. Planning agencies can use these findings to identify necessary changes in infrastructure to encourage safer and more consistent crossing behaviors from pedestrians.