Understanding residents’ safety perceptions: the role of traffic flow, infrastructure, and socio-demographics

Improving roadway safety has been among the focus of various researchers for a long time. Various initiatives have been implemented based on the research findings to improve roadway safety. However, studies that link traffic and transportation infrastructure conditions to roadway safety considering users’ perspectives, are relatively scarce despite the importance of users’ involvement. This study fills that gap by analyzing community survey data from Austin, Texas, collected in 2018 and 2019. The ordered logistic model was used to analyze responses, where respondents needed to rank their satisfaction levels from strongly agree to strongly disagree with the question “I feel safe traveling with other drivers on the road.” Results indicated that residents with high satisfaction with the traffic flow on major and minor roadways, signal timing, street conditions, lighting conditions, and sidewalk maintenance are more likely to feel safe sharing the road with other drivers. Further, demographically, Hispanics and Asian Americans are statistically significantly more likely to feel safe than Caucasians. High-income people ($150K or more) and male residents are more likely to feel safe, while as people live in the city for a long time, they become less likely to feel safer traveling with other drivers. Conversely, residents’ age and presence of bike lanes and trails did not reveal a strong association with the resident’s safety perception. These findings offer valuable, empirically grounded insights for policymakers and urban planners, providing clear priorities for transport projects that enhance both safety perceptions and the operational effectiveness of infrastructure.