Examining the Interplay of Pedestrian and Right-Turning Driver Behaviors in Traffic Conflict Severity

The high number of pedestrian crashes and fatalities in the United States warrants increased attention, including at intersections where road users cross paths and interact. The primary objective of this study is to explore driver and pedestrian behaviors and their interactions during right-turn conflicts at signalized intersections, under both pedestrian post-encroachment (vehicle passes before pedestrian) and vehicle post-encroachment (vehicle passes after pedestrian) scenarios. Using data from 846 pedestrian–right-turning-vehicle conflicts observed over 1,000 h of video collected from 34 intersections in Utah, we analyzed how these behaviors influence conflict severity, measured using a time-based surrogate safety metric. Based on path analysis, the influence of drivers’ reactions on the severity of pedestrian post-encroachment conflicts and pedestrians’ reactions on the severity of post-encroachment conflicts are mediated by the reactions of the other road users (pedestrians and drivers, respectively). Specifically, the reactions of pedestrians have a more significant impact on the severity of the conflict than the reactions of drivers. Based on mediation analysis, larger total effect sizes revealed that pedestrians’ reactions—stopping and slowing down (0.506) or taking evasive actions (1.121)—during pedestrian post-encroachment conflicts do more to affect collision severity than driver’s reactions. Similarly, the effect of pedestrians taking evasive actions to avoid collisions (0.303) was slightly higher than right-turning drivers’ actions of stopping or slowing (0.200) during vehicle post-encroachment conflicts. However, because of the higher severity of post-encroachment conflicts, drivers have a greater responsibility to prevent collisions in these situations. Policy measures should consider design and operational strategies—including signs, pavement markings, and signal timing—to improve driver yielding and pedestrian protection. Focusing on the interactions between drivers and pedestrians in right-turn conflict scenarios could significantly enhance road safety.