Preferences and behaviour of pedestrians and cyclists by age and gender

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Abstract

Preferences and behaviour of older pedestrians and cyclists (women and men, 70 years and above) in cities were studied by means of a questionnaire, and was compared to a group of people aged 40–49. The older respondents appreciate pedestrian crossings, signalized intersections and cycle paths significantly more than the younger respondents do. To a larger extent they feel that it is dangerous to cross the road where these facilities are missing. The older pedestrians also find the presence of a pavement very important on their route, whereas the younger pedestrians more often focus on a fast passage. Differences in preferences and behaviour within the group of older respondents can be related to differences in health and physical abilities rather than to differences in age and gender. The older road users seem to be more influenced by the fact that an action is illegal than the younger road users are. In several instances they more often give this reason for refraining from an act than the younger respondents. They also more often use the argument that they act in a specific way, because it makes them feel safer. And finally they more often express doubts about their own abilities.

Introduction

Although older drivers have been studied in various research projects in recent years, older pedestrians and cyclist have been a low priority issue for traffic safety research. It is obvious that the number of older road users will increase and it is therefore crucial to focus on this group of vulnerable road users and to focus on the special needs that older women and men require (OECD, 2001). Also, as it is very important for older people to keep up their mobility, and in this way enhance their quality of life (Brandt, 2000; Lazarus, 1991).

In general, older people become less agile and their reaction time increases. These age-related changes influence all daily actions, including behaviour in traffic (Carstensen, 1999). However, the age-related deficiencies appear at different ages for different people, and people differ in their awareness of their own deficiencies. On the other hand, older people often cope better with traffic than should be expected, because they have a lifelong experience and to some degree are able to compensate for their problems in traffic.

In Denmark, pedestrians aged 70 and above account for more than 20% of the total number of injured pedestrians in traffic accidents and older cyclists account for about 7%. Most of these accidents take place within urban areas, which will therefore be the focus of the present study.

The injury rate – number of injury accidents per inhabitants in an age group – for pedestrians aged 70 and above in urban areas in Denmark is about four times that of 40–49-year old pedestrians. The injury rate of older cyclists is approaching a factor 3 (Bernhoft, Carstensen, & Lund, 2003). However, one of the reasons for the enhanced risk of older people is their fragility, leading to a higher proportion of personal injuries and fatalities (Bernhoft, Klit, Pedersen, & Troland, 1998; Li, Braver, & Chen, 2003; Sagberg & Glad, 1999). This means that in spite of all possible countermeasures to be introduced, older road users, and especially the unprotected older road users will still remain overrepresented in serious injury accidents.

Previous research has shown that older pedestrians have problems when crossing wide streets or intersections with dense traffic because it is difficult for them to overlook traffic from various directions in the same time (Carthy, Packham, Salter, & Silcock, 1995). Furthermore, it is difficult for older pedestrians to assess the traffic in the farthest carriageway (Oxley, Fildes, Ihsen, Charlton, & Day, 1997). The problems regarding cyclists are found in complex locations and in dense traffic (Steffens, Pfeiffer, & Schreiber, 1999) as well as in intersections both when cycling ahead and turning left (Bernhoft, Hansen, Johansen, & Larsen, 1993). Older cyclists often do not watch out for traffic from behind and have problems manoeuvring the bicycle (Bernhoft et al., 1993). Furthermore, research points at the fact that younger road users tend to underestimate the accident risk for older road users (Rafaely, Meyer, Zilberman-Sandler, & Viener, 2006). Therefore, it is important to increase the awareness of the enlarged traffic risks of older road users and the knowledge of the mechanisms that are the background for older road users’ traffic behaviour.

The aim of this study was to increase knowledge regarding older pedestrians’ and cyclists’ behaviour in traffic and their preferences as to traffic conditions relating to safety and comfort in urban areas. These factors may influence their daily travel and may be connected to traffic safety risks. The differences between men and women have been studied, and also the differences between older people and people aged 40–49 years. This knowledge is an important background for decisions concerning the order of priority of implementing countermeasures and the estimation of measures that to a high degree aim at reducing the number of traffic accidents with older pedestrians and cyclists (Hine and Russel, 1996, Mathey, 1983). This knowledge is also important for the establishment of an infrastructure that ensures both the mobility as well as the safety of the future older pedestrians and cyclists in cities.

Section snippets

Method

The risk perception and behaviour of pedestrians and cyclists in cities was studied by means of a questionnaire. The questionnaire was sent to 850 older people and 850 people aged 40–49 in each of two provincial cities in Denmark during 2001. The respondents were randomly selected from addresses within a well-defined area of the cities and excluded persons living in nursing homes. Gender was not used as selection criteria, resulting in a greater sample of women than men. A few persons from each

Results

The results reflect differences and similarities regarding the preferences and behaviour of the older and the younger respondents as well as of women and men. Furthermore, the analyses assess the degree to which the health conditions and physical capability of the older road users influence their preferences and behaviour. The regression analysis on the total sample showed that the differences between older and younger respondents found in the χ2-test are also significant when background

Behaviour and preferences

It seems that those in the older group who still drive a car or cycle – more often men – to some extent are influenced when walking by their experience as drivers or riders. This group, which is the most active part of the older respondents, in some cases has preferences like the younger group and would choose the fastest route when walking.

In many cases, the arguments for doing or refraining from doing a certain act are the same in both age groups, but it is important to remember, that

Conclusion

The results of this study contributes to a better understanding of the problems concerning the behaviour of older road users and should be considered when implementing physical countermeasures as well as campaigns and information for older road users. It stresses the needs for changing the environment in order to enhance the traffic safety for the older road users without reducing their mobility and possibilities for social activity.

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