Lighted sidewalks could make drivers more likely to yield to pedestrians

In areas with few streetlights, illuminated sidewalks make drivers more likely to yield to pedestrians, lessening chances of pedestrian fatalities, according to a new study from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

The insurance-industry funded nonprofit found that, in areas with few streetlights, drivers were three times more likely to yield to pedestrians at illuminated crosswalks than dark ones, and 13 times mores likely to yield at crosswalks with flashing yellow warning beacons.

About 75% of the 7,522 pedestrians killed in motor vehicle crashes in 2022 were killed in the dark, suggesting that improved lighting could help improve pedestrian safety, the IIHS said in a press release.

To test that hypothesis, researchers from the IIHS and Western Michigan University compared different crosswalks lighting systems at two T intersections, and mid-block intersection, and four-way intersection in Kalamazoo, Michigan. None of these locations had a stop sign or traffic signal, or direct overhead street lighting. Instead, researchers compared the effects of different crosswalk illuminators—LED lights that shine horizontally across the street—while leaving one intersection dark as a control.

“In general, researchers found that any type of added lighting or flashing beacons improved yielding at the three dark locations,” the release said. But drivers yielded most with a combination of flashing lights and crosswalk lights triggered by a pedestrian looking to cross. That matches prior research that showed flashing lights can get a driver’s attention, but don’t necessarily help drivers see pedestrians. That’s where crosswalk lighting comes in.

“Solutions aren’t always complicated,” IIHS president David Harkey said in a statement. “We can stop pedestrians from being killed if we make sure drivers see them—but first city planners and road designers have to see the light.”