Analysis of Child Pedestrians’ Unsafe Road Crossing Behavior at Intersections in School Zones

The characteristics of child pedestrians’ unsafe crossing behavior and the effects of age, gender, accompanying adults and peers on their crossing behavior were examined in this study. Three signalized and one unsignalized intersections in elementary school zones were selected to conduct the observations. Chi-square tests were used to examine the four types of child pedestrians’ unsafe crossing behavior. Children in Grade 4–6 group committed more walking outside of crosswalk and running to cross the road behavior than children in Grade 1–3. Boys in Grade 4–6 were more likely to run and cross against the red light than the girls in the same age. Children accompanied with peers were more likely to walk outside of crosswalk and not look both directions before crossing. Children accompanied by grandparents were less likely to run to cross the road, but children who crossed without adults or peers committed more running behavior. Children showed more unsafe crossing behavior at signalized intersection than at unsignalized intersections. Age, gender and accompaniment have different effects on elementary school children’s road crossing behavior. The insights from this study may provide reference for researchers, educators and decision-makers, to understand the characteristics of children’s road crossing behavior and improve their road safety.