Installing Pedestrian-Separated Traffic Lights: An Effective Measure to Enhance Pedestrian Safety

Introduction: Japan is widely regarded as one of the safest countries in the world. However, there are still fatal pedestrian accidents with turning traffic. The severity of the trauma tends to be high in pediatric and elderly patients. To protect these vulnerable groups, pedestrian-separated traffic lights can be an effective traffic measure. The National Police Agency has promoted the installation of the lights for more than 20 years, but it has made little progress. The rate of installation of the lights is about 4.9% in Japan. This study aims to assess the effectiveness of pedestrian-separated traffic lights. Methods: The crossings that were installed with pedestrian-separated traffic lights between 2016 and 2020 in Tokyo were identified. The traffic accident data at those crossings from 2014 to 2022 was obtained by the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. The data was analyzed in each age group to evaluate the effectiveness of the pedestrian-separated traffic lights. Results: At the crossings where pedestrian-separated traffic lights were installed, the number of pedestrian accidents decreased by 69%. Notably, pedestrians up to 12 years old and those 65 years or older have not been involved in any traffic accidents since the installation of the pedestrian-separated traffic lights. Conclusion: Installing pedestrian-separated traffic lights is an effective traffic measure to reduce pedestrian traffic accidents, especially in vulnerable groups.