Exploratory Analysis of Hazard Factors Influencing the Safety Rating of Pedestrian Bridge

The proliferation of signal-free corridors in Karachi, Pakistan, has necessitated the construction of foot-over bridges to facilitate pedestrian road crossings. However, these structures have gradually deteriorated due to vandalism and social factors. Pedestrians perceive them as unsafe primarily due to their poor physical condition, including the absence of guardrails, and the presence of social hazards such as beggars, addicts, and stray dogs. This study aims to assess the safety rating of a foot-over bridge by pedestrians, considering various physical and social hazard factors. An in-person questionnaire-based survey was conducted at a foot-over bridge located near a major university in Karachi. Pedestrians were asked to rate the bridge's safety as safe or unsafe based on the factors they considered most hazardous while crossing it. These factors included the absence of guardrails, and the presence of beggars, addicts, and stray dogs. Pedestrians were also queried about the optimal time for crossing the bridge (morning, evening, or afternoon). Their age was recorded. A Binary Logistic Regression (BLR) model was developed to analyze the data, and odds ratios were calculated for each hazard factor. The results of the BLR model revealed that the gender of the pedestrian significantly influenced the safety rating of the bridge compared to other variables. Female pedestrians were five times more likely to rate the bridge as unsafe compared to males. Furthermore, younger pedestrians were 0.39 times more likely to perceive the bridge as unsafe compared to older ones. The absence of guardrails increased the likelihood of rating the bridge as unsafe by 1.1 times compared to other hazards, and pedestrians crossing the bridge during the afternoon were 1.7 times more likely to perceive it as unsafe compared to morning or evening crossings. In conclusion, female pedestrians perceive foot-over bridges in Karachi as more unsafe, with the absence of guardrails being identified as the primary physical hazard. These findings underscore the importance of addressing safety concerns and improving infrastructure to enhance pedestrian safety in urban environments. It is recommended that the guard rails of pedestrian bridges should be constructed with recycled sustainable materials to prevent them from theft and improve safety, thus, creating a more resilient infrastructure.