AMERICANFORKCITYSTANDARDS

GuidelinesandStandardsforMidBlock
PedestrianCrossings

I.

ProblemStatement:

A. PedestrianNeeds

Pedestriansdesiretotravelfromorigintodestinationinasnearastraightlineasis
possible.Whenpedestriantravelinvolvescrossingastreetorhighway,many
pedestrianschoosetocrossatamidblocklocationwhenaprotectedcrosswalkatan
intersectionistoofarawayortooinconvenient.

B. CrosswalkStudies

In2005theresultsofastudyconductedbytheFederalHighwayAdministrationwas
publishedontheSafetyEffectsofMarkedVersusUnmarkedCrosswalksat
UncontrolledLocations.

Thisstudyinvolvedananalysisof5yearsofpedestriancrashesat1,000marked
crosswalksand1,000matchedunmarkedcomparisonsites.Allsitesinthisstudyhadno
trafficsignalorstopsignontheapproaches.Thestudyresultsrevealedthatontwolane
roads,thepresenceofamarkedcrosswalkaloneatanuncontrolledlocationwas
associatedwithnodifferenceinpedestriancrashrate,comparedtoanunmarked
crosswalk.Further,onmultilaneroadswithtrafficvolumesaboveabout12,000vehicles
perday,havingamarkedcrosswalkwasassociatedwithahigherpedestriancrashrate
comparedtoanunmarkedcrosswalk.

Inotherwords,pedestriansafetyontwolaneroadswasnotfoundtobedifferent,
whetherthecrosswalkwasmarkedorunmarkedandonmultilaneroadspedestrian
safetywasfoundtobeevenworse.

C. SolutioninGeneral

Markedcrosswalksalone(i.e.,withouttrafficcalmingtreatments,trafficsignalsand
pedestriansignalswhenwarranted,orothersubstantialcrossingimprovement)are
insufficientandshouldnotbeusedunlessimprovementscanbemadetoincreasethe
safetytopedestrians.

Thepurposeofthisinstructionistohelpdeterminewhenamarkedcrosswalkatan
uncontrolledlocationissaferthananunmarkedcrosswalkandtoprovidethe
appropriatesignageaccordingtotheTheManualonUniformTrafficControlDevices
(2003),(MUTCD).

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ThispolicydoesnotcovertherulesforSchoolCrosswalkZones.WhenaSchool
CrosswalkZoneiswarrantedtheUtahTrafficControlsforSchoolZones2005Edition,
Part7SupplementtoTheManualonUniformTrafficControlDevices(2003),mustbe
used.

II.

General

A.ResidentialStreets

Speedsandvolumesonresidentialstreetsshouldbelowerthanonhigherclassification
streetsandshouldnotnormallyrequirepavementmarkingsorsignstoindicate
crosswalks.Requestsforcrosswalksonthesestreetsmaybeanindicationofother
trafficconcernswhichcanbedeterminedbyatrafficstudy.Basedonatrafficstudy,
crosswalkmarkingsorotherappropriatemeasuressuchastrafficcalmingmaybe
implemented.

B. MidblockCrossings

Amidblockcrosswalkisdefinedasacrosswalkatalocationotherthananintersection
withtrafficcontrolsforbothdirectionsoftraffic.Ifitisdeterminedthatpedestrianswill
crosstheflowoftrafficatmidblockratherthanusinganintersectionwithtraffic
controlstostoptheflowoftrafficandallowpedestrianstosafelycross,amidblock
crossingmaythenbeconsidered.

Crosswalklocationsmustallowmotoriststosafelyyieldforpedestrians.Sightdistance
roadwaygeometricsandthepotentialforrearendtypeaccidentsshouldbeevaluated.

Streetswithtwotrafficlanesinthesamedirectionpresentapotentialhazardwhena
vehicleinonelaneyieldstoapedestrianandobstructsthesightlineofthepedestrian
foramotoristintheotherlane.Midblockcrossingonroadwayswithtwolanesof
trafficinthesamedirectionwillnotnormallybeconsidered.Anengineeringtraffic
studymustbeconductedtoensurethesafeuseofamidblockcrossingispossible.

Thesafetyofmidblockcrosswalksisdependentonthejudgementofthepedestrian
andthemotorist.Engineeringstandardscanhelpbymakingcrosswalksmorevisible
andtoensuretheyareinstalledatsafelocations.

C. TrafficEngineeringStudy

Atrafficengineeringstudyisrequiredtodetermineifthecriteriaandwarrantsaremet
foramarkedcrosswalkataparticularlocation,andtodeterminethelevelofmarking
justified.
Thelevelofdetailrequiredforatrafficengineeringstudywillvarywiththelocation
underconsideration.EachcasemustbereviewedbythePoliceDept.,Engineering,and
PublicWorks.
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Theengineeringstudyincludesconsiderationof:

1. Speedandtrafficvolumedataonstreetsbeingcrossed.
2. Pedestrianvolume,ages,andlevelsofmobility.
3. Locationofpedestrianoriginanddestinationpointsandcrossingpatterns.
4. Existingsidewalknetworkandsidewalkramps.
5. Sightdistancesandsightobstructions.
6. Streetcharacteristicsincludinggrades,curvature,pavementwidths,andnumber
ofvehicleandbicyclelanes.
7. Locationofadjacentdriveways.
8. Onstreetparking.
9. Streetlighting.
10. Locationofdrainagestructures.
11. Distancetonearestprotectedormarkedcrossing.
12. Trafficsignalprogression.
13. Potentialforrearendaccidents.
14. Vehicleaccidenthistory.

III

WarrantsandGuidelinesforPedestrianCrossings

A. General

Markedcrosswalksareintendedtoprovidepedestrianswithafeelingofconfidencethat
itissafetocrossastreetatthemarkedlocationandtogivemotoristsadequatewarning
toexpectpedestrianstobeintheroadway.

Theyarealsotoencouragepedestrianstocrossroadwayswherethereareadequate
facilitiestoaccomplishthesepurposes.

ATrafficEngineeringStudyisrequiredwhenevaluatingalocationformarked
crosswalks.Thefollowingaregeneralcriteriatobesatisfiedinadditiontothewarrant
criteriashowninsectionIIIC.1.whenconsideringinstallationofmarkedcrosswalks:

1. Markedcrosswalksmustconnecttoestablishedsidewalksatbothends.

2. ADAaccessiblerampsshallbeincludedatbothendsofcrosswalkinstallations
unlessthereareengineeringreasonstheycannotbeprovided.

3. Adequatestreetlightingmustbeprovidedforthesafetyofpedestrians.

4. Streetparkingmustberestrictedadjacenttocrosswalkstoallowforadequate
sightlinesforboththemotoristsandthepedestrians.Thelengthoftheparking
restrictionshallbebasedonanengineeringstudy.MUTCDrequires50ftNo
Parkingminimum.
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B. ResidentialStreets

Markedcrosswalkswillgenerallynotbeinstalledonresidentialstreets.Marked
crosswalkswillbeevaluatedforuseonresidentialstreetswhenindicatedbyoneor
moreofthefollowing:

1. Thestreetintersectswithacollectororhigherclassificationstreetandthe
averagedailytrafficvolumeontheminorstreetexceeds1000vehiclesperday.

2. Thecrossinglocationiswithinadesignatedschoolzoneorisakeyelementofa
designatedschoolwalkingrouteplan.

3. Atrafficengineeringstudyindicatesasafetyproblemthatcanbeaddressedbya
markedcrosswalk.

Evaluationofmarkingacrosswalkonaresidentialstreetrequiresanengineeringtraffic
studyandsatisfyingtherequirementsofIII.A.

C. MidBlockCrossings

1.WarrantCriteria

Acrosswalkatamidblocklocationmaybeinstalledwhenthelocationsatisfiesthe
generalcriteriaofIII.A.andmeetsallofthewarrantcriteriaforamidblockcrosswalk
listedbelow:

a Thecrossingvolumeisnotcausedbyacorrectablegapinthesidewalksystem.

b Thereisaminimumdistanceof600feettothenearestprotectedcrossing.A
protectedcrossingisacrossingcontrolledbystopsignsorsignalsoratagrade
separation.

c Engineeringstudyindicatesnounsafevisibilityorsiteconditionswouldbe
created.

d Postedspeedis35mphorlessand85percentilespeediswithin5mphofthe
postedspeed.

e ThepedestrianandvehiclevolumesmustcrossintheINSTALLCROSSWALK
areaofChart1inAppendixA.

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Whenamidblockcrosswalkiswarrantedthefollowingguidelinesshallbeused:

Level3SpecialEmphasispavementmarkingsshallbeused(SeeFig.2inAppendixA,
andFigure3B16oftheMUTCD)
AdvancedWarningsigns(R16)shallbeplacedinadvancewhendictatedbyan
EngineeringStudy(SeeFig.4inAppendixA,andR16signagefromtheMUTCD)
CrossingtreatmentsasshowninSectionIV.C.shouldbeconsideredwhentheAADT
is12,000veh/dayorgreater.

2.ExceptionstoWarrantCriteria

Thepedestrianvolumeandvehiclevolumewarrantsmaybewaivedforanyofthe
followingsituations:

a. Thecrossinglocationisakeyelementofadesignatedschoolwalkingrouteplan
b. Atrafficengineeringstudyindicatesasafetyproblemthatcanbeaddressedbya
markedmidblockcrosswalk.

c. Wherepedestrianusewoulddictate,suchasneartransitstops,bikecorridors,
parksandmultiusepathcrossings.

D.MajorIntersections

1. UnsignalizedIntersections

a. Allwaystopcontrolledintersection
ProvidedthegeneralcriteriainSectionIII.A.issatisfied,allwaystopcontrolled
intersectionsshallusethefollowingguidelines:
Ataminimum,crosswalksshallhaveLevel1markings.(SeeFig.1inAppendix
A,andSection3B.17oftheMUTCD)
Level2or3markingsmaybeusedbasedoncrossinglength,speed,and
pedestrianandvehiclevolumes.Yieldtopedestrianssignsmaybeplaced
inadvanceofallwaystopcontrolledintersections.(SeeFig.1&2in
AppendixA,andSection3B.17oftheMUTCD)
Whencrossinglengthsaregreaterthan36feet,pedestrianrefugeislands
shallbeevaluated.

b. Partialstopcontrolledintersection
Eachapproachatapartialstopcontrolledintersectionwillbeeitherstop
controlledoruncontrolled.Crosswalkmarkingsatpartialstopcontrolled
intersectionswillbeevaluatedbasedonthecontroloftheapproachbeing
consideredasindicatedbelow.Teeintersectionswithheavyturningvolumes
andhighlyskewedintersectionsmayrequireadditionalconsideration.

i. Stopcontrolledapproaches
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ProvidedthegeneralcriteriainSectionIII.Aissatisfied,stopcontrolled
approachesshallusethefollowingguidelines:

Ataminimum,crosswalksshallhaveLevel1markings.(SeeFig.1in
AppendixA,andSection3B.17oftheMUTCD)
Level2or3markingsmaybeusedbasedoncrossinglength,speed,and
volumes.(SeeFig.1&2inAppendixA,andSection3B.17oftheMUTCD)
Yieldtopedestrians(W11A2),signsmaybeplacedinadvanceofstop
controlledapproachesatintersections.

ii.Uncontrolledapproachtointersection
Thissectionappliestotheuncontrolledapproachesofpartialstopcontrolled
intersectionsthataresimilartoamidblockcrosswalkinthatthepedestrian
iscrossinguncontrolledtraffic.Thewarrantsformidblockcrosswalks,as
statedinsectionIII.C.1shallbeusedwhenevaluatingcrosswalksacrossthe
uncontrolledapproachesatanintersection.ThePedestrianandvehicle
volumesmaybewaivedasindicatedinSectionIII.C.2.Providedthegeneral
criteriainSectionIII.A.issatisfied,andthemodifiedmidblockwarrantsare
satisfied,uncontrolledapproachesshallusethefollowingguidelines:
Markedcrosswalksonuncontrolledapproachesofintersectionsshallbe
Level3markings.
Yieldtopedestrians(W11A2),signsshouldbeplacedinadvanceof
crosswalksacrossuncontrolledapproachesatintersections.
CrossingtreatmentsasshowninSectionIV.C.maybeconsidered.

2. SignalizedIntersections

ProvidedthecriteriainSectionIII.A.aresatisfied,signalizedintersectionsshall
usethefollowingguidelines:
Ataminimum,crosswalksshallhaveLevel1markings.

Level2or3markingsmaybeusedbasedoncrossinglength,vehicle
speedandvolumes.

Signalsshallprovideenoughtimetoallowpedestrianstocrossthestreet
safelybasedonawalkingspeedof3.5feetpersecond,thisratemaybe
reducedatlocationswherethepredominatewalkingspeedisslower.

Actuatedsignalsshouldhavepedestriansignals(WALK,DONTWALK)
activatedbypushbuttons.

Pedestriansignals(WALK,DONTWALK)shallbeinstalledwhenthe
crosswalkcrossesmorethantwolanesofsamedirectiontrafficorwhen
theaveragedailyenteringtrafficvolumeexceeds10,000vpd.

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IV.

STANDARDS

A. PavementMarkings

Crosswalksshallbeaminimumof10feetorthesamewidthastheapproach
walkwayifthewalkwayiswiderthan10feet.Whentheguidelinesandwarrants
sectionofthispolicyindicatestheuseofcrosswalkmarkings,oneofthefollowing
threelevelsofmarkingshallbeused:

Level1Standardcrosswalkmarkingsaretwo12inchwhitelines,6feetapart.
(Fig.1)

Level2Enhancedstandardcrosswalkmarkingsaresimilartostandardcrosswalk
markingsexceptthewidthofthewhitelinesisanywherefrom15incheswideto24
incheswide.(SeeAppendixA,Fig.1)

Enhancedstandardmarkingsmaybeusedwhenanyoneofthefollowingapply:
Crosswalkiswiderthan10feet
Crossingmorethan2lanesoftraffic
Intersectionenteringvolumeexceeds900vehiclesperhourforanyone
hour
Yieldtopedestrians(W11A2),signisplacedinadvanceofcrosswalk
Acrossminorstreetattwowaystopcontrolledwhenmajorstreetspeed
limitexceeds35mph

Level3Specialemphasiscrosswalkmarkingsconsistofwhite2footwidebars
witha1footspaceat90degreestothecrosswalk.(SeeAppendixA,Fig.2)The
widthofthebarsandspacesmaybeincreasedupto36inchesatsomelocations
toallowthetiresofvehiclestotrackthroughthespaces.

SpecialEmphasisMarkingsmaybeusedatanyofthefollowinglocations:
Withinschoolzonesorasshownonaschoolwalkingrouteplan
Whenanengineeringstudyindicatestheneedforadditionalvisibility
Wherecrosswalktreatmentsareusedthatresultinraisedpavements

SpecialEmphasisMarkingsshallbeusedatthefollowinglocations:
Wheremidblockcrossingsareinstalled
Acrossuncontrolledtrafficatpartialstopcontrolledintersections
Wherecrossingsareinstalledonstreetshavinganaveragedailytraffic
volumeof4000vehiclesperday.

HighPedestrianAreasInbusinessdistricts,campuses,commercialareasandother
highpedestrianareaswherepedestrianactivityistobeencouragedandwhere
significantdistractionstomotoristsandpedestriansarelikelytooccur,engineering
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judgementcanbeusedtoimplementahigherlevelofpavementmarkingthanwouldbe
indicatedbythecrosswalkmarkingstandards.Careshouldbetakentoinsurethat
specialemphasismarkingsatsomelocationsdonotweakenordetractfromother
crosswalkswherelowerlevelmarkingsareused.

B. FlashingYellowCrosswalkLights

Flashingyellowlightsmaybeusedatmidblockcrosswalksifanengineeringstudy
indicatesaneedtoincreaseawarenessofthecrosswalklocationorthepresenceof
pedestrians,(SeeAppendixA,Fig4).

Flashingyellowlightsdonotassignrightofway.

Improperinterpretationsofthepurposeormeaningofflashinglightscanleadto
conflictingmovementsandshouldbeconsideredwhenevaluatingtheuseofflashing
yellowlights.Forflashingyellowlightstobeeffective,theymustcommandrespect
frommotorists.Ifthelightsflashedcontinually,amotoristwouldloserespectand
ignoretheinstallationafterbeingfalselywarnedseveraltimes.Therefore,when
flashingyellowlightsareusedatcrosswalks,theyshouldbeactivatedbypedestrians.

Pedestrianactuatedlightsflashwhenapedestrianpushesabuttonorpassesasensor.
Theselightsindicatethepresenceofapedestrian.Thelightscanbemountedwiththe
crosswalksignsatthesideoftheroad,overthedrivinglanesonmastarms,orinthe
pavementwithairporttaxiwaystylelights.Forcrossingmultilanesamedirectiontraffic,
overheadorinpavementlightsarerecommended.

Figure3,AppendixA,showsatypicalMidblockcrosswalkandFigure4,AppendixA,
showsaMidblockcrosswalkwithflashingyellowwarninglights.

C. CrosswalkTreatments

Thepurposeofcrosswalktreatmentsistoimprovesafetyby:
Reducingvehiclespeedatthecrosswalk
Reducingexposureofthepedestriantovehicles
Increasingawarenessofthepresenceofpedestrians
Increasingvisibilityofthecrosswalk

1. PedestrianWarrantedTrafficSignals
Trafficsignalscanbeinstalledatanintersectionormidblockbasedonpedestrian
volumesifwarrantedbytheManualonUniformTrafficControlDevices.(MUTCD)
Whentrafficsignalsareinstalledbasedonpedestrianvolumes,pedestriansignals
mustbeused.(WALK,DONTWALK)

2. GradeSeparationStructure
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Whereitisnotpossibletoaccommodatepedestrianswithatgradecrossings,grade
separationmaybeconsidered.Thesefacilitiesareexpensiveandcanaddoutof
directiontravel.Therefore,gradeseparationshouldonlybelocatedwheretheiruse
wouldbemaximized.Toensureproperuse,thesefacilitiesmustbeopen,withgood
visibilityandeasilyaccessible.

3. CenterMedians
Centermedianscanimprovecrossingsafetybyprovidingapedestrianrefugewhich
willallowthepedestriantocrosseachdirectionoftrafficseparately.Centermedians
shallonlybeinstalledwherepavementwidthsaresufficienttoallowforthesafe
clearanceofpedestriansfrommovingtrafficandtheresultingtrafficlanesare
sufficientinwidthforthepostedspeedlimit.Crosswalksleadingtothecenter
medianwillbeoffsettoplaceemphasisonthemedianasastoppingplacefor
pedestrians.Atypicalmidblockcrossingwithapedestrianmedianandsignlocation
isshowninAppendixA,Fig.5.Whenacentermedianisusedandthereisalsoon
streetparking,bulboutsmaybeconsideredinconjunctionwiththecentermedian.

4. BulbOuts
Bulboutsforpedestriansshouldbeconsideredwhenwarrantsexistforpedestrian
crossingsatmidblockormajorintersectionsandthepavementwidthisgreater
than32feet.Bulboutsfortrafficcalmingpurposesmaybeinstalledonstreetsof
lesserwidthsbutarenotconsiderednecessarysolelyforpedestrianpurposes.A
typicalmidblockcrossingwithbulboutsisshownonAppendixA,Fig.6.The
illustrationalsoindicatesthelocationofsigning.

APPENDIX A

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Figure 1 shows standard and enhanced crosswalk markings.

Figure 2 shows special emphasis crosswalk markings

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