Pedestrian Crossings
To encourage people to walk and to improve safety, the Bradford Council is installing pedestrian crossings at more locations than ever before.
Signalled Crossings
There are several different types of signalled crossings for roads. These are:
- Pelican crossings for pedestrians only to cross roads.
- Puffin crossings (for pedestrians, with detection that holds off the traffic until you finish your crossing).
- Toucan crossings (also have facilities for cyclists).
- Pegasus crossings (also have facilities for horses).
Zebra Crossings
Zebra crossings are recognisable by their alternating black and white striped markings across the road. These are not traffic light controlled and pedestrians always have right of way over traffic when crossing a road at a zebra crossing.
Pedestrian Refuges
In some locations, where a pedestrian crossing cannot be justified, a pedestrian refuge (traffic island) may be placed. These narrow the road and allow pedestrians to cross in two halves with a safe place to wait in the middle. Pedestrians should cross with care as drivers have priority at traffic islands.
Requesting a New Pedestrian Crossing
Bradford Council receives many requests for new crossings each year. To help use precious resources to best effect, each site is surveyed and the results compared with national criteria to identify the most needy locations.
The main factors measured are the number of people crossing and the amount of traffic. Other factors include the number of injuries on the road near the site and local features such as hospitals, schools and shops.
Schemes which can show good value for money through casualty savings are funded from the Local Safety Schemes programme, whilst other priorities are decided by the Area Committees.
