PBIC updates PEDSAFE Guide and Countermeasure Selection System

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), through a contract with HSRC's Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center (PBIC), recently released a 2013 version of the Pedestrian Safety Guide and Countermeasure Selection System (PEDSAFE), an online guide for implementing countermeasures to improve the safety and mobility of pedestrians. The information and tools available in PEDSAFE 2013, www.pedbikesafe.org/PEDSAFE, enables practitioners to effectively select and review primarily engineering and roadway infrastructure improvements to improve the safety of the walking environment.

"The safety and mobility of pedestrians needs to be considered when designing new construction or renovating existing roadways," said Charlie Zegeer, one of the main PEDSAFE contributors and director of the PBIC. "PEDSAFE helps practitioners learn from the latest safety research, updated guidelines and best practices, to identify treatments that might work in their local communities, all with the ultimate goal of helping reduce pedestrian deaths and injuries."

PEDSAFE is comprised of four sections: a guide of basic information, specific countermeasure details, case studies (success stories) and an expert system tool for countermeasure selection, as well as links to dozens of other helpful web resources.

Guide: This section helps practitioners better understand the issues facing pedestrians, how to analyze crashes, and how to implement new treatments.
Countermeasures: The Countermeasures section includes a comprehensive list of 67 engineering countermeasure options, as well as details of each countermeasure, including its description, purpose, considerations, safety effect and cost.
Case Studies: There are 85 case studies, or success stories, that document one or more of the countermeasures that have been implemented, along with the background of the problems, pedestrian safety solutions selected, and the results of the treatments.
Selection Tool: The expert countermeasure selection system software allows users to input the basic safety problem and site conditions. The expert system will propose a "short list" of candidate treatment options that likely would be suited to address the specific pedestrian safety problem for that situation.

This online version of PEDSAFE updates a nearly nine year old version, and is now available as an interactive tool, usable on your computer, tablet or smartphone. PEDSAFE can be found at www.pedbikesafe.org/PEDSAFE.

PEDSAFE 2013 was prepared for the FHWA Office of Safety by HSRC, Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. and Toole Design Group.