Investigating Factors Influencing the Enhancement of Pedestrian Crosswalk Safety Using Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP)

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
1 M.Sc., Grad., Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran.
2 Associate Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran.
3 M.Sc., Grad., Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Hakim Sabzevari University of Sabsevar, Iran.
Abstract
Pedestrian safety is one of the fundamental challenges of urban transportation, as pedestrian crossings are considered critical traffic points with the highest likelihood of accidents. This study aims to identify and prioritize the factors influencing the improvement of pe-destrian crossing safety. The research was conducted using a library-based review and a questionnaire survey. To manage uncertainty in expert judgments, the Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) was employed. First, through a systematic review of 120 articles and traf-fic reports, 26 key components were identified and classified into five categories: geometric and design characteristics, traffic control and signage, traffic flow performance, behavioral and human factors, and environmental conditions. Subsequently, data obtained from fuzzy pairwise comparison questionnaires completed by 30 experts were analyzed.The results indicated that the criteria “severity of impact on safety” and “feasibility of implementation without physical disruption of the crossing” had the highest weights. Among the components, crosswalk markings, removal of sight obstructions, and lighting were identified as top priorities—interventions that are rapid, low-cost, and have a direct impact on visibility. In contrast, factors such as land-use type and traffic volume were ranked lower due to their high costs and implementation difficulties. The findings demonstrate that focus-ing on simple and low-cost measures can effectively enhance pedes-trian crossing safety.
Keywords

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