Impacts of mobile phone distractions on pedestrian crossing behavior at signalized intersections: An observational study in China

Nowadays phone distraction has started to become an increasingly recognized phenomenon. This article aims to examine the influences of phone use on pedestrian crossing behavior at signalized intersections in China. Using video recording and manual counting, pedestrian crossing behavior, age, gender, phone use, and waiting time are obtained at four signalized intersections. Totally, 4196 pedestrians are observed in four peak hours. Among them, 328 pedestrians (7.82%) are using their mobile phones, including 162 male pedestrians and 166 female pedestrians. The average phone use rate in different age groups are presented as follows: children (4.49%), youth (10.69%), middle-aged (6.87%), and elderly (1.15%). In terms of the phone using behavior on the crosswalk, age is a significant factor, while gender is not. For the type of violation behavior, the results show that pedestrians who use mobile phones are most likely to be late starters. In addition, some other important results are found: mobile phone use can raise the violation of pedestrian crossing behavior; pedestrians using their phones are more likely to cross on red; and pedestrians using their phones while crossing walk more slowly. Finally, the application significance of this study and some recommendations are provided to improve pedestrian safety.