See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/320673617

Utilization of footbridges: Influential factors and improvement proposals

Article  in  Advances in Transportation Studies · July 2017

DOI: 10.4399/97888255077374

CITATIONS READS

5 9,545

2 authors:

Razi Hasan Madzlan Napiah

Queensland University of Technology Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS
9 PUBLICATIONS   47 CITATIONS    168 PUBLICATIONS   1,017 CITATIONS   

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:

Bio-asphalt Binders View project

Using rice husks powder to upgrade the rheological properties of bitumen binder View project

All content following this page was uploaded by Razi Hasan on 10 October 2019.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

Utilization of footbridges:
influential factors and improvement proposals

R. Hasan M. Napiah
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University Technology PETRONAS,
32610 Bandar Seri Iskandar, Perak Darul Ridzuan, Malaysia
email: razi_1981@yahoo.com

subm. 6th June 2017 approv. after rev. 24th July 2017

Abstract
In spite of significant development in using modern methods to enhance pedestrians’ environment and its
sustainability, the provision of the footbridge still lacks its optimal function in protecting and transferring
pedestrians from both sides of the street. This structure should be designed to accommodate every type of
users, including children and elders. It should be designed in a way that focuses more on human needs as a
priority rather than the other two elements of transportation system: road and vehicle. In the context of
pedestrians’ safety, researchers have tried to understand pedestrians' behavior and their perception about safe
walking and crossing. Thus, factors which affect pedestrians' decisions to choose their routes have been
researched worldwide. This review paper endeavors to highlight the work that had been carried out to assess
the utilization of footbridges. The findings on factors influencing the function of this structure showed that
the most affecting factor to increase the usage rate was the consideration of the footbridge as a safe crossing,
while the most cited factor of not using the footbridge was the lack of time. In addition, with a view on some
proposed procedures to enhance the usage rate, barriers were the most suggested solution in the literature to
increase the footbridge usage. Furthermore, this paper discusses the variety of environmental and economic
benefits of constructing a footbridge.

Keywords – pedestrian footbridges, overcrossings, utilization, pedestrian safety, behavior

1. Introduction
Since the very beginning of their familiarity with walking, human beings struggled to make
their safest and shortest paths in their daily life activities, and had experienced different aspects of
difficulty to reach their destinations while performing business and social interaction [1]. They
tried to walk over an environment which contained a variety of terrains such as mountains, hills,
valleys and rivers. This environment has developed throughout the years to become more
complex and to be more civilized as more cities with highly complicated road networks have
emerged. From this particular point, researchers tried to study this new environment and its best
option to provide safe and simple walking, and to assess the available infrastructure for
pedestrians’ mobility. One of these studied infrastructure facilities was the footbridge, which has
been viewed in its simplest constructed form to bridge the gap between two hills, or two banks of
a narrow river. By the time of motor traffic emergence, the footbridge became a need to protect
pedestrians while crossing the congested roads in order to keep the vehicular flow uninterrupted,

- 43 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

and to reduce the chances of pedestrian–vehicle accidents. Therefore, the modern definition of the
footbridge is that a vertical separation facility used to segregate pedestrians from vehicular traffic
without being exposed to the risk of accidents [2].
In spite of paid efforts to provide a safe crossing pedestrians, there is still lacking in the field
of shifting the utilization of footbridges to a higher level, while some gaps still need to be
researched. Mainly, this structure suffers from the low usage by pedestrians in spite of its
characteristics that secure maximum safety [3]. Therefore, the risky action by pedestrians trying
to cross the street has recently stimulated researchers to find out leading factors to this behavior
and to propose, in some cases, appropriate procedures to enhance the utilization rate of the
footbridge. By considering the footbridge as a vital structure in the road network and as a
cornerstone among the safe crossing facilities, this review endeavors to identify the most effective
factors on the utilization of the footbridge. The study identified methods and ways used by
researchers to investigate the usage of the footbridge, in addition to their proposals to enhance the
utilization and how to gain environmental benefits from its construction.

2. Methodology
This review depends on a literature survey of available research work published in the
electronic database (such as Google Scholar, Scopus, Web of Science, etc.) between January 2000
and January 2016. The review focused on papers studying the footbridge either as the core issue
of the study or as a briefly studied structure among a collection of other pedestrians’ crossings in
the field of pedestrians’ safety. The scope of the papers is varied from the behavior of pedestrians,
the structural characteristics, to the environmental and economic concepts. Keywords ‘pedestrian
footbridge utilization/usage’ were used in searching in the database, but little works of literature
have been found to be dealing directly with the matter of footbridges. This may due to the recent
attention to the feasibility of the footbridges as the increased volume of pedestrians and vehicles
throughout the last two decades resulted in a higher level of threat to pedestrians’ safety.
Eventually, 19 articles were found on the database reporting on footbridges, in which 17 articles
were written in English and two were in Spanish. Articles are shown in Table. 1.
3. Brief historical overview
The search for origins of footbridges building refers to the early civilizations in China, South
Africa and Mesopotamia [4]. At that time, most of these bridges were made of wood or stone. By
the eighteenth century, professionals in England and France started to pay their best experience in
building footbridges, especially when they began to use the cast iron. In Europe, the use of steel in
suspension footbridges was arisen by the nineteenth century. Gradually, the sector of footbridge
construction witnessed quantum leaps that resulted from the increased traffic requirements
through the time. These requirements, in turn, have stimulated the engineers to start investigations
about the popularity of this type of crossings amongst the pedestrians. By 1953, there were no
established acceptable warrants in England and the U.S to serve as standards in deciding whether
to build a footbridge or not, but one of the early studies on that time asked a question about the
feasibility of building a footbridge, and the proportion of people who are willing to use it, if it was
provided in a specific location in London. Therefore, in order to answer this question, Moore [5]
conducted an observational study of pedestrians’ usage of three footbridges. By calculating the
ratio ‘R’ of the time spent on crossing the bridge to the total time spent in crossing the road, he
found out that 80 % of people are willing to use the footbridge if the time of using it equals the
time of crossing the road, which means when R equals 1.

- 44 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

Tab. 1 - Articles of the review

In order to guarantee this ratio to be less than one (i.e. to increase the proportion of footbridge
usage) he suggested an installation of road block devices; such as handrail to make the path
inconvenient for pedestrians, and to draw their attention to the footbridge as a safe crossing while
forming their pattern of walking. The same explanatory variable of time ratio between the

- 45 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

footbridge and the surface route was used by Allos and Mohamad [6] in a study that depended on
the observation of two footbridges in Baghdad, Iraq. However, the complexity resulted from this
variable drove the study to reject it, and to replace it by applying other variables to be used in the
model, such as the distance from the footbridge and the existence of an escalator. The results
showed that the traffic volume is the most affecting factor on the utilization rate, and suggested
the escalator as a solution to enhance this rate.
By the time, researchers and experts in the field of pedestrian safety and pedestrian crossing
facilities have spared no effort in establishing acceptable thresholds, criteria, and guidelines for
installing a footbridge, and they didn't stop their struggle in developing integrated warrants to
justify the provision and effectiveness of footbridges. Most of these studies were carried out in the
seventies of the twentieth century, where evaluations of social, environmental, and economic
impacts of footbridges were conducted in order to achieve an interesting environment that attracts
community members while practicing their daily activities. These evaluations were presented in
many studies, such as the study conducted by Braun and Roddin [7] who defined the significant
benefits of using the footbridge by measuring 36 variables that quantify these benefits. Another
evaluation work was carried out by Perfater and Demetsky [8] who performed a study about the
pedestrian characteristics in suburban areas to describe the importance of walking among the
public, and to set general principles for successful footbridges, such as the construction of side
fence in a shape that can provide visibility and security at the same time.
From the viewpoint of Axler [9], the existed warrants were not integrated for footbridges
building sector, and this was based on his claim that many warrants were inappropriate to apply
and had no reasonable quantitative values to be used in this field. Therefore, Axler [9] decided to
establish a set of quantitative warrants which can provide the basis for determining the successful
provision of footbridges. Depending on the reviewed related studies and the three types of used
warrants in the U.S (quantitative threshold warrants, priority ranking systems, and system
warrants), a study on 25 footbridges and 15 underpasses was conducted in five cities in the USA.
Through informal inquiries, pedestrians stated that the heavy traffic is the main factor to use the
footbridge. The assessment of existing warrants was carried out by a panel of advisors, consisting
of five transportation professionals from different cities. The study has proposed eight warrants
that defined the minimum pedestrian volume, the minimum vehicle volume, the distance from the
proposed location to the nearest safe crossing, the on street physical barriers, lighting provision,
topography changes, the adjoining land use and the fund availability to provide a footbridge. In
addition to these results, the pedestrian barriers were proposed to be an essential solution to
encourage the usage of footbridges and to enhance the safety. Depending on the counted
pedestrian usage/non-usage volume in all studied sites, Table. 2 indicates the degree of success of
each footbridge by calculating the ratio of users to the total pedestrians, then comparing it to the
range of values of the corresponding degree.
With the wide deployment of footbridges at the end of the twentieth century, researchers
tended to be more interested in the function of the existing footbridges. For instance,
Tanaboriboon and Jing [10] found that regardless of the age or gender of pedestrians in Beijing,
these people will most likely avoid the footbridge on their route because of the inconvenience
resulting from ascending and descending the stairs. This could be a major excuse for elders and
unhealthy people as they have to put extra effort while using the footbridge. The Florida Planning
and Design Handbook [11] stated that pedestrian overpasses will not have an effective role among
other types of crossings just because they simply improve safety, rather they should be accessible
and comfortable to the users.

- 46 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

Tab. 2 - Degree of success for grade separated pedestrians’ crossings. Source: Axler 1984 [9]
Degree of Success Ratio of Users to Total Pedestrians
Successful 0.95 to 1.00
Moderate 0.55 to 0.94
Unsuccessful 0.01 to 0.54

The handbook mentioned general warrants for the footbridge, such as the best way to operate
it when there is a high volume of vehicular traffic and pedestrians’ activities in the street, where
gaps are almost not existed because of the nearly saturated traffic situation. The handbook also
proposed the need of providing a footbridge over a street with high speeds and limited gaps on
corresponding lanes, where the potential risk may push pedestrians to use the overpass. The
physical barriers were recommended in order to obstruct the jaywalkers’ movement.

4. A narrative review of the literature

4.1. The role of pedestrians' behavior
When the decision of building a footbridge is taken, stakeholders are usually familiar with its
benefits. The most important benefit is the elimination of conflicts between vehicles and
pedestrians, which will result in non-interruption of traffic flow accompanied by non-reducing in
vehicles speed. Add to that the decreasing of accidents and injuries rates. Nevertheless, if it is
possible and more convenient to cross the road at the grade, pedestrians will not use the
footbridge, and a problem of safety threat will arise.
This problem was studied by Räsänen, et al. [3] in the form of searching for factors that
influence the use and non-use of pedestrian bridges in order to enhance the usage rate. A survey
was conducted on 5 different types of footbridges in Ankara, Turkey.
The difference between footbridges was in the structural characteristics such as the number of
stairways, the existence of an escalator, and the location. The questionnaire was designed to
obtain pedestrians perception by asking 408 participants about their familiarity with the site and
how often they use the footbridge, in parallel with obtaining their convenience and safety beliefs.
Results showed that the use rate of footbridges varied from 6% to 63% of the population in terms
of the existence of traffic signal in the location, which decreased the usage rate, and the existence
of an escalator, which increased the usage rate. The logistic regression model showed that usage
rate is influenced by time saving, safety, and familiarity of the area. The study suggested that
footbridge use or non-use is a habit, and it considered past behavior as a strong predictor of
pedestrian intentions in using the footbridge in the future. In other words, people who used to
utilize the footbridge in the past are more likely to use it in the future, and those who usually cross
on the street level are going to do so as well. Suggestions to increase the usage rate were
proposed, such as motivating the people to use stairs as a healthy exercise, and providing an
escalator.
In some cases, when the road is built, it may not take into account the importance of
pedestrian movement from one point to another to cross this road, especially if this movement
was compared with the interest in the continuity and the ease of vehicle traffic flow. Furthermore,
Hidalgo-Solórzano, et al. [12] deemed that the footbridge was diverted from its role by enhancing
traffic flow rather than preventing pedestrians from being exposed to the risk. This has motivated
the researchers to study the reasons behind the utilization of footbridges in Mexico City. The

- 47 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

study was carried out on 102 footbridges belonged to 9 categories of road types classification
from all over the city. Interviews were conducted on 2533 pedestrians, in which 68% of them
used the footbridge. Answers were verified and used as inputs for the logistic regression model.
Findings from the study revealed that the main reason for using the footbridge was that it is safer
than other types of crossings. Laziness and the much effort involved in ascending the stairs were
the main reasons for not utilizing the footbridge. An interesting finding from this study was the
given reason by pedestrians for not using the footbridge, who said that ‘they are able to cross the
street’, which refers to the available ease and accessibility on the road section, as this ease is
resulting from the absence of blocking elements. This answer was presented by 25.7% of
participants. The study recommended that improving security, such as monitoring and lighting,
and ensuring the physical safety of pedestrians, such as good design and maintenance, are
required to promote the footbridge utilization, and this should be combined with pedestrians’
education about safe walking.
Human factor presents a high rate of importance in the road safety, and that will call for
studying the human behavior scenarios while crossing the road, especially for a situation in which
the pedestrian is a reckless person who failed to make a good estimation of the traffic condition in
the strategic phase (first phase), and chose to walk in unsafe route in the tactical phase (second
phase), then performed an actual risky movement in the operational phase of pedestrian behavior
(third phase). By adopting the study by Hidalgo-Solórzano, et al. [12], Arias Gallegos [13]
presented a study on reasons for not using the footbridges in Arequipa, Peru. The study
considered that absence of safety culture is the main reason for accidents in Peru, and claimed that
the irresponsible behavior of pedestrians did not come from nowhere, but it stemmed from the
culture concepts which rule the house education. The study was conducted on three footbridges,
and observations included a sample of 360 pedestrians who didn’t use the bridge while crossing
the street. The conducted survey involved social and demographical characteristics of the
pedestrians. The results came similar to the one of Hidalgo-Solórzano, et al. [12] where lack of
time followed by laziness were the most cited reasons for not utilizing the footbridge. The fear of
being assaulted was stated as an important reason, therefore, passers felt no need to use this
structure in order to avoid such harassments. The study provided an example for using candy
dispensers placed in the middle of the footbridge to attract people to use it. It also stated that the
placement of barriers as a promoting action will decrease the fatality rate by 10%. For pedestrians
who were afraid of being assaulted, Gallegos proposed a solution through implementing the
presence of permanent security to prevent this kind of accidents. In general, prevention was the
essential solution to avoid accidents, therefore, he focused on the importance of awareness
campaigns to increase the utilization of footbridges, and to keep the safety in its higher rates.
A study was designed by Soltani and Mozayeni [14] aimed to explore the influential factors on
the perceived risk of pedestrians when they cross at the street level. Ten traditional footbridges in
Tehran and Shiraz, Iran, were included in this study. A questionnaire was distributed among 200
pedestrians who were selected randomly. According to the results, there was a significant
relationship between the average speed of the vehicles and the percentage of the bridge users. The
study concluded that the footbridge use or non-use is a habit rather than a coincidental behavior.
Safety on the footbridge was considered as the main factor to utilize it. The participation of elders
showed that they did not use the footbridge in large numbers, mainly because of the efforts spent
on ascending the stairs, especially if they were carrying bags. The study proposed the installation
of an escalator and high barriers as effective solutions to enhance the usage rate.

- 48 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

Despite its advantages, sometimes, crosswalks such as zebra or pelican crossings cannot
completely guarantee safety for users, mainly because of the exposure to vehicles movement on
the road which will increase the chance of collision with pedestrians. From this concept,
Sangphong and Siridhara [15] proposed the use of footbridges to enhance pedestrians’ safety in
their highly-accidents rate city, Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand. They aimed to improve the
decision of choosing and utilizing the footbridge by pedestrians in both urban and suburban areas.
Six footbridges were chosen to collect the data. Face–to-face interviews were conducted with 705
participants in the city, and 435 participants in the suburbs. The Logistic regression showed that,
in the city, the number of accompanied friends has a positive effect on the usage rate. Conversely,
the distance between the bus station and the footbridge location has a negative effect. The model
indicated that the number of lanes has a major role in making the decision for either crossing the
road or using the footbridge. For the suburban area, law awareness had the most influence on the
pedestrians’ decisions among other factors, followed by the past accident experience. The study
suggested an educational program to enhance the awareness about the benefits of using the
footbridges.
Usually, the severe traffic congestion in most cities of the world leads to a higher rate of risk,
especially when pedestrians violate the laws of safety. A similar tragic situation has existed in
Dhaka city, Bangladesh, where Sabet [16] considered this situation as the most disturbing issue
for the country where it was associated with a high rate of pedestrian fatalities per year. The study
explained that there was a similarity between the experience of drivers’ resistance to wear the seat
belt; despite the ease and the large benefit of its use; and the use of footbridges where the
tendency of people is to act in the same mentality. From this viewpoint, Sabet [16] tried to find
out the explanation of pedestrians’ behavior who dangerously kept crossing the street, and to test
their fear of risk as a motive in preventing them from continuing with this behavior in the future.
Four footbridges were studied, and 200 pedestrians were surveyed and questioned about their
perception of fear, risk, past behavior, and attitudes towards the law while crossing the street. A
logistic regression was used to test the impact of the observed variables. The study results showed
that 36.1% of respondents reported that they usually follow the traffic rules, while about half of
them stated that they were very worried about being hit by a car. The logistic regression model
explained that the perception of risk was only taken into account when the participant was not
racing against the time, which refers to the fear of risk as an insufficient reason to motivate people
for more using of the footbridge. The study stressed out the importance of linking the attitude of
pedestrians with the actual behavior, not with the stated one in the survey. The study suggested
enforcement of traffic rules as it is practically not effective in Dhaka city, besides enhancing the
police authority to apply the law, and to make an adjustment to the fine amount to be more
effective. The study also suggested the good design and fencing on the sidewalk as a long term
solution.

4.2. Structure characteristics of footbridges

The importance of the pedestrian footbridge came from the fact that it serves walkers, joggers,
and in some cases bicyclists and wheelchair users. The type of users who will utilize the
footbridge is related to the structure design, where it could be provided by stairs or ramps, linear
or curvilinear ramps, elevator or escalator, fence or railing, bicycles gutter and other types of
structural elements. The study of Renfro [17] tested parameters related to the structural design of
pedestrian and bicycle overcrossings in order to inform planners and designers about the basic
requirements for building new and successful footbridges in the future. The study reviewed the

- 49 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

main design guidelines published in the US, such as AASHTO, ADA, and WSDOT. Twenty-nine
bridges were selected to conduct the study, where the evaluation was carried out for
walking/cycling routes, the overall surrounding network, adjacent pedestrian facilities, and design
elements. The study cited good examples for the best structural dimensions to be used in the new
designs. The study considered that the well-aesthetically designed elements and the ongoing
maintenance are significant attractions for people to use these overcrossings.
In the same field of defining the effect of design elements, a study by Hasan and Napiah [18]
endeavored to explain the effect of the structural elements and the characteristics of the road in
which the footbridge is located on the usage rate. The study chose two footbridges located in the
city of Ipoh, Malaysia, in two well-used sites by the population in their daily destinations.
Observations of the pedestrians’ crossing behavior, measurements of dimensions of the street and
the structure elements, volumes and speed surveys were all conducted in order to obtain the
required data from the two sites. The results showed that the slope of the stairs carriage may add
some effort to the user while ascending the stairs, which will decrease the footbridge utilization.
The well-paved surface and the routine maintenance found to be significant indicators for the
higher use of the footbridge. The existence of the fence on both sides of the street, and the
wayfinding tools referring to the footbridge location were suggested as usage enhancement
procedures.
In urban areas, people always choose the convenient path which will guarantee them the
maximum gain, either in terms of time or in saving energy. This choosing process usually
depends on the pedestrian’s perception of the current situation while walking, which will result in
the corresponding behavior. Pedestrians’ safety was studied by Sharples and Fletcher [19] in
order to search the factors that encourage people to use different types of crossings. The study
was carried out in 6 cities in Scotland on ten different types of crossing facilities located in thirty
sites. The footbridge was one of the studied facilities. Three types of questionnaire were
conducted: on–street questionnaire, questionnaire for school children, and interviews for
physically impaired people. 890 participants were included in the study procedure. The study
found that in each city pedestrians used the existing footbridge, and this was due to either the
location of the footbridge which was on the main flow path, or because of lack of other available
facilities to be used. The study also found that the highest rate of proper use of pedestrians’
crossings occurred on the footbridges. 8% of the interviewed people stated that they preferred to
use the footbridges, while 24% chose the pelican crossings. About 65% of the interviewed people
at the overpasses rated the position of the crossing as important or very important in deciding to
use it. About 31% of physically challenged people stated that they will avoid the footbridge in
their walking, mainly because of the stairs. The study focused on the importance of promoting the
walking environment for school children and people with impaired mobility. It also suggested
publicity campaign to define priorities for walkers, and to promote correct behavior while walking
and using the crossing facilities.
In the same context which is related to safety, Abojaradeh [20] discussed the importance of
traffic safety, where the traffic accidents are considered as the second major cause of death in
Amman, Jordan. The study aimed to evaluate the pedestrian bridges by defining factors that affect
the usage rate. Eleven footbridges, distributed on five streets, were selected for the study. A
questionnaire survey alongside with the personal interviews was carried out. A regression model
was formed to find out the relation between the usage rate and the possible affecting factors. The
model demonstrated that there is a high correlation between the usage percentage and the
existence of a median barrier, followed by the overall width of the cross walkway and the posted

- 50 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

speed limit. The drawn results from the questionnaire stated that pedestrian bridges can increase
the safety when the awareness of its benefits is available. Discomfort and wasting of time were
the reasons obtained from the questionnaire for not using the footbridge. The study proposed law
enforcement, education, increasing the role of police, training courses about traffic laws, and
penalties for violations as solutions to improve the safety and the usage of footbridges.
It was noticed in many cases that footbridges will be provided in locations where people
unwilling to utilize them, therefore their construction will result in decreasing of the safety level
and in loss of money. This situation was studied in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia by Rizati, et al. [21]
who stated that the lack of suitable warrants for the Malaysian case has led, in some cases, to
improper decision of providing some locations with footbridges. The study intended to find out
reasons for not using the footbridge by studying sixteen footbridges from four different sites. The
video survey was used to record the pedestrians’ behavior, and the on-street questionnaire was
distributed. A multiple linear regression was used to analyze the affecting factors. Five factors
were found to be significant, and they were fence installation, directional flow, existing of a
median, vehicle volume and the distance of the facility to an existed traffic light. Findings from
the questionnaire showed that the most cited reason for not using the footbridge was the distance
of the facility location, which was far away from the pedestrian's location and caused extra loss of
time. The second reason was the exhaustion while climbing the stairs. The study suggested
treatments to enhance the usage rate including barrier or fence installation, escalator installation,
strategic location and law enforcement. The study also showed that footbridge was ranked as the
less favorable facility between other pedestrian crossings, but it was also considered as the best
facility for schools and residential area.
The maintenance of the footbridge has a great role in extending the lifetime of the structure,
especially when it is applied in the exact time for the emergence of the minor problems in the
body of the structure, which requires immediate treatment before they become major repairs. The
study of Bujňák, et al. [22] explained the types of damage that could be found in the footbridge
structure, and how to deal with in suitable ways. Four case studies of four footbridges were
explained, and problems in each footbridge were identified. The study confirmed that the
inspection is essential to maintain the public safety and confidence when pedestrians use the
footbridges.
In the context of concerning about spending lot of funds in building and maintain footbridges
without taking into account its feasibility or its proper location to be built, Soltani [23] aimed to
focus his study on defining and analyzing factors affecting the usage of the footbridge, thus to
enhance its feasibility and to support its construction decision. The study was implemented over
twenty footbridges in several locations in Shiraz, Iran. 300 pedestrians were interviewed in order
to draw their perception of the importance of footbridges. The discrete choice model was used to
analyze the stated factors. Results explained that the absence of elevator and ramps, beside to the
lack of awareness about safety had a negative impact on the footbridge usage. The model showed
that aesthetic appearance and impediments of movement under the bridge had positively
influenced the usage rate.
The function of pedestrian crossing facilities will be assessed by determining the level of
service, but it is not usually the case for the footbridges. One of the studies has adopted the
methodology from Highway Capacity Manual 2000 in assessing the level of service for the
studied footbridge [24]. The footbridge was located on a street that had suffered from high fatality
rate before its construction. Interviews with two hundred pedestrians were carried out in order to
define their tendency towards the footbridge utilization. A questionnaire for twenty-five

- 51 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

stakeholders, who were experts in the field of urban transportation and industry, was used in order
to have their opinion about the benefits of footbridges construction. Results showed that the level
of service of the footbridge based on peak pedestrian volume was LOS F, which did not match the
recommended level of service C or B for optimal operating. The interviews indicated that time
loss while using the footbridge is the most important factor for not using it, followed by the factor
of neglect of cleanliness and maintenance of the bridge. One-third of the interviewed people
proposed the provision of lighting to achieve security and safety on the footbridge, and nearly a
quarter of them proposed maintenance and barrier erecting to improve the usage. The
questionnaire showed the viewpoints of stakeholders about the suitable location of providing the
footbridge, and about the estimated construction cost and aspects of maintenance. The study
suggested short-term solutions including improvement of maintenance, provision of lighting,
installation of road signs, and erection of barriers. The long-term solutions included increasing the
height of the concrete barrier, building footbridges with sufficient width, and providing the
footbridge with ramps.

4.3. Before and after studies

Authorities of road construction have the major role in making and implementing the decision
of constructing footbridges where they are needed. This action should be taken after conducting a
deep study about the road traffic situation and pedestrians’ walking patterns in the area of the
proposed bridge, during a period of time that can record accidents rate. A study by Mutto, et al.
[25] conducted a review of traffic accidents one year before and after the construction of a
footbridge in Kampala, Uganda. 123 pedestrians were interviewed in order to draw their
perception about taking risk when crossing the road. Pedestrians’ volume was counted for users
and non-users. Respondents stated that they were unwilling to walk extra distance from their
location to the footbridge, since it would be accompanied by a loss of time. People who used the
footbridge did so to avoid accidents and to be in a safe situation. The police traffic record showed
that the number of pedestrian injuries increased after the intervention of the footbridge. The
increase was noticeable for the number of minor injuries, but a significant decrease in fatalities
number was noticed after the footbridge construction. This refers to the biggest benefit of saving
the life by using the footbridge. The study suggested that the provision of the footbridge, if not
well studied or failed to address its function, will cause life and money loss. The study considered
the 100 meters distance from both sides of the footbridge as the effective distance to make benefit
from the footbridge existence, otherwise, the cheaper alternatives were considered more effective.
Commonly, pedestrians walk in an irregular way in the city streets and urban places,
depending on their own behavior to direct their walking, and to randomly respond to traffic
situations. From this viewpoint, the need for designing good urban spaces is required, especially
for the crossing facilities and street furniture. This was illustrated in the study of Raslan, et al.
[26], who aimed to link the pedestrians’ needs with the good design of urban spaces. They chose a
public area located in Alexandria city, Egypt, where a mixed and heavy pedestrians and vehicles
traffic have existed in front of a train station. In order to define the preferred crossing points and
selected paths, the observation of pedestrians’ behavior and the existed traffic situation was
conducted before and after the building of a footbridge. A computer simulation model was used to
simulate the movement of the pedestrians in order to find out the best scenario which will lead to
change in the pedestrians’ behavior, and to define the optimal walking path. The simulation
showed that the preferred paths for pedestrians to traverse from one point to another did not
change after the intervention of the footbridge, and that pedestrians who chose to utilize the

- 52 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

footbridge are less in number from others who crossed the street from unexpected points. The
study attributed that to the misalignment of the footbridge location with the actual pedestrians’
path. The simulation program re-located the footbridge to a new location that aligned with the
heaviest pedestrians’ flow, then applied some changes in location of the barriers. The result from
this modification showed that the new proposed location has improved the usage of the
footbridge. The study suggested that engineers and designers should use the computer simulation
and modeling in the design phase before constructing the footbridge, in order to define the
optimal location for its deployment, thus to maintain safety and time.
In the same context, Alterkawi [27] described the traffic situation on an expressway in the city
of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where the number of existing footbridges is insufficient to facilitate the
daily movement of the pedestrians in that area. The study suggested increasing the number of
footbridges with optimal deployment over the studied expressway, taking into account the
importance of pedestrians' time and safety. An appropriate section of the road was chosen to
conduct the study, where the greatest number of pedestrians’ movement and high traffic densities
have existed. Direct observations of pedestrians’ volume, crossing locations, required time for
crossing, and vehicles volume were carried out. The study observed 123 pedestrians who were
crossing the street at specific points. A computer simulation model was used to generate a suitable
and successful number of required footbridges and their locations all over the studied road. The
model proposed the deployment of three footbridges in three optimal locations, which were
predicted to lead to an overall improvement in the crossing time of the pedestrians during peak
periods. The study made suggestions to improve the usage of these footbridges after being
constructed. These suggestions were such as applying coercive devices by erecting barriers in the
median, and providing an attractive design of the footbridge. The study concluded that an
appropriate pedestrian bridge intervention could be tested before its construction by using the
computer simulation model.

4.4. The impact of surrounding environment

Recently, many researchers aim to gain an environmental impact on the urban life in order to
reflect benefits over nature, health, and social aspects. Transportation and traffic sector has
received a high attention in the field of environmental enhancement, such as reducing fuel
consumption, and in controlling the emission of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. A study by
Li, et al. [28] considered the pedestrian footbridge as the most important facility, as it mitigates
the environmental effects by providing a convenient path for pedestrians. The footbridge also
provides a non-delayed vehicle traffic if compared to the traffic signal which will extend the
standby time of the vehicles, causing more increasing in the fuel consumption. The study
described an integrated program of benefits gained from the construction of the footbridges in
four aspects: traffic, environment, resources, and maintenance. By using a simulation tool on an
intersection that has no footbridge over it and located in Guangzhou, China, the study concluded
that the benefit from building the footbridge, from the environmental effect and pollution
mitigation viewpoint, could earn back the expense of the construction through a period of time
does not exceed one year.

4.5. Economic factor

In the feasibility analysis phase, information about the appropriate design and the estimated
cost must be gathered and analyzed in order to justify its provision. Footbridges can rarely be

- 53 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

economically justified, where the estimated cost of construction ranges from USD 500,000 to
USD 4 million depending on the site conditions, such as the width of the roadway that requires in
sometimes a long span footbridge, and the added cost for the handicapped accessibility
requirements [29]. A study by Mohapatra [30] aimed to evaluate the feasibility of a collection of
crossing facilities in Kenya, including footbridges, in order to define benefit/cost ratio by giving
the time saved by each motorist for one year with the provision of the crossing facility a monetary
value that was calculated for five years. The study concluded that footbridges are not
economically viable during the first five years of operating. However, the main economic gain
from building the footbridge is reducing the accident cost of fatalities and injuries, which is much
more important from the human safety viewpoint.

5. Discussion
The literature showed a vigorous effort paid by researchers to address the problem of people
shunning from using the footbridge, and to propose suitable solutions to promote its function.
Safety level, risk exposure, pedestrians’ perception and pedestrians’ movement were the basis of
behavior studies to build the research on, and to identify the causes of the footbridge utilization.
The interest in the structure, and in its economic and environmental benefits was the motive of
other studies to carry out their investigations. The review noticed that the questionnaire was the
most preferred instrument to be used for collecting the relative data. 40% of the reviewed papers
used this technique, followed by 25% of papers that used interviews and observations. The
logistic regression model was used by the majority of the studies in analyzing the data, while
others used the computer simulation model. Each study chose a number of footbridges to conduct
the research, and each one had a sufficient sample size for the required data and the scope of the
study. Table 3 shows the summary of types and the used methods for each of the reviewed
articles.
Figure 1 shows the hierarchy of factors that influence the pedestrians’ decision either to use or
not to use the footbridge. These factors were ranked according to the highest level of importance
which was reported in the whole literature. The majority of the reviewed papers cited the lack of
time as the most important factor that affected the usage in negative ways. The time factor was
expressed by pedestrians who were in hurriedness or who believed that the footbridge usage is a
waste of time. This behavior is reasonable when the road lacks obstruction devices such as
fencing along the street sides, and when the vehicles volumes are in numbers that allow several
gaps to be created within one minute time especially in the off-peak hours. Therefore, the
available gaps in vehicular traffic become significant to give the pedestrian a margin of safety
between himself and the oncoming vehicles, and will push him to avoid the bridge because of
hurriedness. This factor was shown in the study of Arias Gallegos [13] and Sabet [16], where the
common characteristic between individuals of the studied samples was the fact that pedestrians, as
well as drivers, are reckless and maintain a risk behavior such as walking off the sidewalk and
crossing the street at any point. The second most important cause for not using the footbridge is
the distance from its location, where pedestrians will find this distance as a waste of time to walk
towards it, especially if they found themselves farther than 100 meters away from this footbridge
[25].
Exhaustion, laziness, and lack of safety awareness all came in the third level of factors of not
using the footbridge. By their limited physical ability due to their age, elderly people who try to
cross the street will avoid the footbridge as it is a cause of extra effort when ascending the stairs,
where sometimes the slope of the stairs carriage is more than 40 degrees [31].

- 54 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

Tab. 3 - Summary of the review

In many cases, the footbridge will represent a challenge to the walkers, and some of them will
be exhausted to accept this challenge, especially when they are on their way back from work by
the end of the day. Many studies [12-14] found laziness as a significant factor to influence the
people behavior, even for younger pedestrians.

- 55 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

Fig. 1 - Hierarchy of factors influencing the use and non-use of footbridges

On the other hand, the footbridge was considered as a safe facility to be used and this was the
most cited factor for the high rate of usage. The stated factor which was expressed by most people
of the studied population [12, 14, 25] refers to their sufficient realization of footbridges' benefits,
which confirms that in some level of education, introducing the new generation of public to the
safety concepts and to the purpose of these existed structures as a life savior when crossing the
street, is an essential task for safer walking.
Other factors played a significant role in motivating pedestrians to climb the footbridge such
as the existing of barriers and fences, street overall width, and speed limit [18, 20, 21]. When
vehicles speeds are high, they will decrease the gaps on the street, and will extend the waiting
time for the pedestrian who is intending to cross on the level. This will nudge the pedestrian to
rethink about using the footbridge to save the time.
To improve the footbridge performance, thus the usage rate, many procedures were proposed
in the literature, where some of them were applicable, and others were either expensive or needed
a long period of time of preparing and implementing to be effective.
Figure 2 demonstrates the percentage of the proposed enhancement procedures in the literature
for the function of the footbridge.
Barriers were the most proposed solution in about 40% of the reviewed papers for enhancing
the function of the footbridge. This is a very effective application on two-way roads, where the
rate of accidents is higher than the rate on a one-way road [32]. If the road has a median that
works as a refuge area for pedestrians, the intentions of jaywalkers to cross the street will increase
by the sense of ease, unless a blocking barrier with a sufficient height is implemented to make this
action harder or even impossible. The barrier will play the role of physical and psychological
impeder to the movement and intention of the pedestrian who is willing to cross the road [12, 14,
17, 20, 21, 24, 27, 33].

- 56 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

Fig. 2 - The percentage of proposed procedures

Enforcement of law and the logic location of the footbridge were the most chosen factors by
the studies after the road barriers. In some large and congested societies, where most of the
population are highly active walkers in an aggressive way, enforcement of the law seems to be an
ideal solution to the general aspects of traffic situation [16]. If the law does not exist or weakly
enforced, pedestrians perception about road crossing will be confined to the matter of winning or
losing of time or energy rather than a matter of safety. The enforcement of law is an effective
treatment for pedestrians’ behavior, especially for teenagers, as it leaves a long-lasting impact on
their present behavior in order to enhance their future one. On the other hand, pedestrians should
utilize the convenient facilities that correspond with their walking trends, otherwise, they will be
forced to cross illegally and break the law. Therefore, the good and logic location of the
footbridge is important to accommodate the largest volume of pedestrians [17, 19, 21].
It is worthy notable that other enhancement procedures in the review were focusing on
promoting the structure elements, such as maintenance, aesthetics, security, lighting, fencing,
way-finding signs and provision of an escalator. These procedures varied between applicable
solutions for the already existing footbridges, and recommendations for the newly designed ones
[17, 18, 20, 22, 24, 27]. In order to increase the number users, it is very encouraging that the
development of the footbridge is continuously in line with the latest technology used in the field
of traffic safety, such as the use of intelligent transportation systems and the applications of green
technology. Such procedures will provide the basis of an environment of a sustainable city. The
development of this structure should be implemented on an equal level with awareness campaigns
and dissemination of traffic safety through education culture [12, 13, 15, 20].

6. Conclusions
This review paper shed some light on factors that influence the utilization of footbridges. It
found that the most affecting factor to increase the usage rate was the consideration of the
footbridge as a safe crossing according to the viewpoint of pedestrians. Obviously, this perception
came from the sense of relief and security that footbridge gives to the users as they find
themselves isolated from the vehicular traffic and the potential risk.
On the other hand, the study referred that the most cited factor of not using the footbridge was
the lack of time, as the pedestrian will consider the ascending of stairs and walking along the
footbridge deck as a loss of time. Barriers were the most suggested solution in the literature to
increase the footbridge usage, where this procedure is the fastest, most effective, and most

- 57 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

reasonable in cost to be implemented. As a policy implication of footbridges construction, if

stakeholders are willing to consider constructing of barriers in the future, then higher usage rates
of new footbridges are going to be achieved.
However, solutions should focus on the behavior of the pedestrians since its impact will last
longer. Therefore, stakeholders should not lecture the people on how to comply with the proper
behavior, but gently nudge them to do so by implementing the psychological motives, such as
considering the usage of the footbridge as a healthy exercise, or as a pleasant experience. As an
example, the converting of stairs of a pedestrian overpass into piano keys in order to create a fun
experience while stepping on them may increase the number of pedestrians who are willing to use
the facility.
Although the existence of specific studies about improving safety on different crossing
facilities with the focus on children and elderly pedestrians were found in the literature, an
explicit study about children and elders’ perception and behavior towards the footbridge
utilization is still lacking, where the review didn’t observe any in this area. While the design stage
made great strides in the vision of how to promote the footbridges, the current efforts in the field
of footbridge enhancement still lack the implementation on the site especially in using the new
technology and modern devices. In western European countries, decision makers and designers
consider that footbridges are unsuitable and outdated type of crossings, where pedestrians became
more involved in the activities of the new life style of speed and technology. Crossing facilities
should adapt to the city and to the urban life of these countries. This idea about adaptation is still
not searched and discussed in relation with footbridges, which may imply that footbridges will not
be considered anymore for building in the future in these countries. On the other hand, for the
countries which still count on this structure for saving lives, the footbridge can be developed in a
sustainable way by using green technology methods to generate energy and to facilitate
pedestrians simultaneously.

Acknowledgment
This research was supported by University Technology PETRONAS under Graduate
Assistantship Scheme, from Faculty of Engineering, Department of Civil and Environmental
Engineering.

References
1. J. J. Fruin, "Pedestrian planning and design," USA1971.
2. H. Ribbens, "Pedestrian facilities in South Africa: Research and practice," Transportation Research
Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, vol. 1538, pp. 10-18, 1996.
3. M. Räsänen, T. Lajunen, F. Alticafarbay, and C. Aydin, "Pedestrian self-reports of factors influencing
the use of pedestrian bridges," Accident Analysis & Prevention, vol. 39, pp. 969-973, 2007.
4. U. Baus and M. Schlaich, Footbridges: construction, design, history: Walter de Gruyter, 2008.
5. R. L. Moore, "Pedestrian choice and judgment," OR, vol. 4, pp. 3-10, 1953.
6. A. Allos and A. Mohamad, "Usage of pedestrian footbridges," Traffic Engineering & Control, vol. 24,
1983.
7. R. Braun and M. F. Roddin, "Evaluating pedestrian-oriented facilities," in Compendium of Technical
Papers of the 47th Annual Meeting of the Institute of Transportation Engineers at the Fourth World
Transportation Engineers Conference, Mexico City, October 2-6, 1977., 1977.
8. M. A. Perfater and M. J. Demetsky, "Pedestrian Attitudes and Behavior in Suburban Environments,"
USA1975.

- 58 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

9. E. Axler, Warrants for pedestrian over and underpasses. Washington, D.C.: Federal Highway
Administration, Office of Safety and Traffic Operations, 1984.
10. Y. Tanaboriboon and Q. Jing, "Chinese pedestrians and their walking characteristics: case study in
Beijing," Transportation research record, pp. 16-16, 1994.
11. U. o. N. Carolina, Florida pedestrian planning and design handbook. Florida: Highway Safety Research
Center; Florida Department of Transportation, 1999.
12. E. Hidalgo-Solórzano, J. Campuzano-Rincón, J. M. Rodríguez-Hernández, L. Chias-Becerril, H.
Reséndiz-López, H. Sánchez-Restrepo, et al., "Use and non-use of pedestrian bridges in Mexico City:
the pedestrian perspective," Salud publica de Mexico, vol. 52, pp. 502-510, 2010.
13. W. L. Arias Gallegos, "Motives of disuse of pedestrian bridges in Arequipa," Revista Cubana de Salud
Pública, vol. 38, pp. 84-97, 2012.
14. A. Soltani and S. Mozayeni, "Factors Affecting The Citizen’S Trends To Use The Pedestrian Bridges In
Iran," Management Research and Practice, vol. 5, pp. 5-18, 2013.
15. O. Sangphong and S. Siridhara, "A Study of Footbridge Utilization Behavior in Nakhon Ratchasima,"
Review of Integrative Business and Economics Research, suppl. NRRU; Hong Kong, pp. 93-100, 2014.
16. D. M. Sabet, "Fear Is Not Enough: Testing the impact of risk on pedestrian behavior in Dhaka,
Bangladesh," University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh, 2013.
17. R. Renfro, "Pedestrian/Bicycle overcrossings: lessons learned," Retrieved March, Field Area Paper,
Portland State University, vol. 24, p. 2014, 2007.
18. R. Hasan and M. Napiah, "The Effect of Structure and Street Characteristics on the Footbridge Usage,"
Journal of Applied Science and Agriculture, vol. 9, pp. 52-59, 2014.
19. J. Sharples and J. Fletcher, Pedestrian perceptions of road crossing facilities. Scotland: Scottish
Executive Central Research Unit, 2000.
20. M. Abojaradeh, "Evaluation of pedestrian bridges and pedestrian safety in Jordan," Civil and
Environmental Research, vol. 3, pp. 66-78, 2013.
21. H. Rizati, S. Z. Ishak, and I. R. Endut, "The utilization rates of pedestrian bridges in Malaysia," in IEEE
Business Engineering and Industrial Applications Colloquium (BEIAC), Langkawi, Malaysia, 2013, pp.
646-650.
22. J. Bujňák, R. Hlinka, J. Odrobiňák, and J. Vičan, "Diagnostics and evaluation of footbridges," Procedia
engineering, vol. 40, pp. 56-61, 2012.
23. A. Soltani, "Functional Evaluation of Footbridges based on Personal Preferences, the Case Study of
Shiraz," Geography and Environmental Planning, vol. 25, pp. 133-150, 2014.
24. R. Manjanja, "Non-Usage of Pedestrian Footbridges In Kenya: The Case Of Uthiru Pedestrian
Footbridge On Waiyaki Way," Dissertation, , University of Nairobi, 2013.
25. M. Mutto, O. C. Kobusingye, and R. R. Lett, "The effect of an overpass on pedestrian injuries on a major
highway in Kampala–Uganda," African health sciences, vol. 2, pp. 89-93, 2002.
26. R. A. Raslan, A. F. Bakr, and H. A. Ayad, Simulation of Pedestrian Behaviour in Urban Spaces. A Case
Study of “Sidi Gaber” Public Space, Alexandria, Egypt. Germany: Proceedings REAL CORP 2011
Tagungsband, 2011.
27. M. M. Alterkawi, "A computer simulation analysis for the development of pedestrian overpasses on
King Fahad road in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia," Journal of King Saud University, vol. 19, pp. 13-25, 2007.
28. L. Li, M. Cai, and Y. Liu, "Integrated Benefit Evaluation of Pedestrian Bridge," Environmental
Modeling & Assessment, vol. 17, pp. 301-313, 2012.
29. C. V. Zegeer, Pedestrian facilities users guide providing safety and mobility: United States, Diane
publishing, 2002.
30. D. R. Mohapatra, "An Economic Evaluation of Feasibility of Non-Motorized Transport Facilities in
Mombasa Town of Kenya," EUROPEAN ACADEMIC RESEARCH, vol. 2, pp. 10913-10939, 2014.
31. S. N. Chengalur, S. H. Rodgers, and T. E. Bernard, Kodak's ergonomic design for people at work. United
States of America: John Wiley, 2004.
32. C. V. Zegeer, L. Sandt, M. Scully, M. Ronkin, M. Cynecki, and P. Lagerwey, "How to develop a
pedestrian safety action plan," United States, University of North Carolina, Highway Safety Research
Center, Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center2006.

- 59 -
 Advances in Transportation Studies: an international Journal Section A 43 (2017)

33. J. Hine and J. Russell, "Traffic barriers and pedestrian crossing behaviour," Journal of transport
Geography, vol. 1, pp. 230-239, 1993.

- 60 -

View publication stats