Pedestrian Count Study - Downtown Raleigh Alliance

• Lost commercial potential: window shopping becomes limited
when pedestrians feel that they cannot stop or linger in the
sidewalk space
• Reduced safety: pedestrians become limited in their ability
to control their own path or movements when a sidewalk is
overcrowded and also have a greater tendency to walk into
the roadway to skirt slow-moving clusters.
• Diminished accessibility: an overcrowded sidewalk reduces the
amount of space available for persons in wheelchairs, parents
with strollers, children, the elderly, or persons with disabilities to
maneuver.
Sidewalks that do not offer appropriate width to meet pedestrian volume
requirements also leads persons to avoid walking or to fi nd an alternate
route. A study of Copenhagen’s main street, Strøget, determined that 12
people per minute per yard has consistently been the threshold volume
that leads people to choose an alternate route.
Conversely, providing an effective sidewalk width (excluding obstructions
and “shy” distance) that appropriately accommodates pedestrian traffi c
without overcrowding capitalizes on commercial opportunities, improves
pedestrian safety, and increases accessibility and equity of the corridor.
Additionally, an appropriate sidewalk width also contributes to the
pedestrians’ choice to travel along preferred routes.
5.4.4 Sidewalk Width
Walkway width recommendations in current transportation industry
guidelines generally exceed the 36-inch minimum needed for
accessible travel under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Institute
of Transportation Engineers (ITE), in its 1998 recommended practice
publication, “Design and Safety of Pedestrian Facilities,” recommends
planning sidewalks that are a minimum of fi ve-feet wide with a planting
strip of two-feet on local streets and in residential and commercial areas.
Sidewalks should be at least fi ve-feet wide, exclusive of the curb and
other obstructions. This width:
• Enables two pedestrians (including wheelchair users) to walk
side-by-side, or to pass each other comfortably
• Allows two pedestrians to pass a third pedestrian without leaving
the sidewalk
Sidewalk development is dependent on available street width, motor
vehicle volumes, surrounding land uses, and pedestrian activity levels. For
example, pedestrian traffi c near a stadium requires the movement large
volumes at a relatively fast pace, while a mixed-use area encourages
persons to travel at a slower speed, window-shop, and engage street
features. Though a minimum width is provided, it is also possible for
sidewalks to be too large for their environment. Sidewalks should be
designed to meet expected volumes and to interact with surrounding
land-uses. Streetscape features, as described previously provide
articulation and visual interest for the pedestrian realm. Standardizing
5.12-City Comparisons | Downtown Raleigh Alliance