Your own phone might be your biggest threat on city streets

VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Urban safety experts have long worried about the impact of distracted driving. However, a new study by University of British Columbia researchers suggests we should be equally concerned about distracted walking.

Researchers from UBC’s Department of Civil Engineering have uncovered alarming differences in behavior between pedestrians engrossed in their mobile devices and those who remain alert to their surroundings. The study, conducted at two busy intersections in Downtown Vancouver, used advanced video analysis techniques to examine the behavior of pedestrians and drivers during near-miss incidents.

Published in the journal Accident Analysis & Prevention, the findings paint a concerning picture of how our smartphone addiction is affecting our safety on city streets. Distracted pedestrians, those using their phones for texting, reading, or listening to music, tend to walk slower and maintain closer proximity to vehicles compared to their non-distracted counterparts. They also rarely yield to oncoming traffic and are less likely to change their walking direction, even when dangerously close to vehicles. This behavior suggests a significant decrease in awareness of their surroundings and reduced navigational efficiency.

In contrast, non-distracted pedestrians engaged in safer behavior. They maintained greater distances from vehicles, yielded more frequently, and adjusted their speeds according to the traffic situation. These pedestrians also demonstrated more variability in their movements, indicating a higher level of responsiveness to potential dangers.

“Non-distracted pedestrians made safer choices when interacting with vehicles,” says lead researcher Dr. Tarek Sayed, a civil engineering professor and transportation safety expert in the faculty of applied science, in a statement. “They maintained greater distances from vehicles, yielded more frequently to oncoming traffic and adjusted their speed when necessary.”

The study employed a sophisticated approach called Multi-Agent Adversarial Inverse Reinforcement Learning (MA-AIRL) to model and analyze pedestrian-vehicle interactions. This method allowed researchers to capture the dynamics between pedestrians and drivers, treating both as intelligent agents making decisions based on their surroundings.

In simulations, interactions involving distracted pedestrians showed a 46.5% decrease in safety levels compared to those with non-distracted pedestrians. The average minimum distance between distracted pedestrians and vehicles was 30.2% less than for non-distracted pedestrians, significantly increasing the risk of collisions.

Perhaps most alarmingly, distracted pedestrians moved at speeds that were 65.7% slower than their non-distracted peers. This reduced speed, coupled with decreased awareness, creates a perfect storm for potential accidents.

The study also revealed interesting insights into driver behavior. Vehicles tended to decelerate more when approaching distracted pedestrians, suggesting that drivers recognize the potential risks associated with these individuals. However, this behavior by drivers may not always be sufficient to prevent accidents, especially in unexpected situations.

These findings have significant implications for urban planning and road safety measures. The researchers suggest that areas with high concentrations of distracted pedestrians may benefit from targeted interventions such as wider crosswalks, adjusted traffic signal timings, or the implementation of smart infrastructure to alert both pedestrians and drivers of potential dangers.

“For example, we can accommodate the risk of distracted walking and design safer infrastructure by adjusting crosswalk signal cycles or introducing audio signals to let pedestrians know when it is time to cross,” says study co-author Tala Alsharif, a graduate student in civil engineering at UBC. “City planners could also display warnings specifically for pedestrians distracted by their phones—perhaps even introduce mobile notifications that prevent pedestrians from using their phones while crossing.”

As our cities become increasingly connected and our reliance on mobile devices grows, addressing the issue of distracted walking is crucial. This study serves as a wake-up call, highlighting the need for increased awareness campaigns and potentially even policy changes to combat this modern-day hazard.

The next time you find yourself reaching for your phone while walking, remember: the digital world can wait. Your safety, and the safety of those around you, depends on staying present in the physical world.