Government told to make two-second change to pedestrian crossings

A boy pressing the button on a pedestrian crossing

Pedestrian crossings should allow more time so people with mobility issues and older pedestrians can safely use them, researchers have said. A study by the universities of Bath, Birmingham and Exeter found the time interval of crossings in the UK is more than two seconds shorter than some people need.

The research found just 1.5% of older adults with mobility issues walk fast enough at their comfortable speed to cross the road within the time normally allowed by pedestrian signals. During the study, the walking speeds of 1,110 adults aged 65 and over were analysed.

Their average walking speed was 0.77 metres per second, well below the 1.2 metres per second assumed by most pedestrian crossing designs. This means the average participant f