GREEN LINE LIGHT RAIL Safety Recommendations
The Green Line Light Rail System is a commuter transit system connecting Minneapolis and Saint Paul. There has been an abnormal rate of pedestrian safety incidents on the Green Line light rail system. As of March 2015 (research project completion date), the Green Line had an average pedestrian incident rate of one incident every 22 days. This is significantly higher than the Blue Line which had an average incident rate of one incident every 156 days. Extensive accident reports have not been released by the Metro Transit, the governing body for the transit system. This data is the most recent the author could find on total accidents including injuries and fatalities. Considering fatalities alone, the Green Line does not have a good safety record. Since opening in June of 2014, there have been three fatalities (Nelson, 2015). That may seem like a low number, but when compared to national statistics, the number is very high. According to the Federal Transit Administration’s most recent report on rail safety, in the period of time from 2003 to 2008, there were only eight passenger fatalities from light rail transit in the entire United States (2009, p. 20). Three fatalities in eighteen months is a troubling statistic and additional safety measure should be implemented.
Along with fellow researchers Justina Schiroo and Brian Fitch, we conducted an extensive analysis of the light rail system. The research project included:
Observational research of pedestrian behavior at all stations
Surveys of passengers on trains
Interviews of passengers on trains and a stations
Literature reviews of relevant safety research
Concept development and ideation for safety improvements
The findings of the research and a full report were presented to the Minneapolis and St. Paul Metro Transit executive team. The content below is a sample of the recommendations. Each recommendation includes observtions of current pedestrian behaviors and concepts for improving the safety of the system.
Reaching the station
Two pedestrians take their young children directly across the intersection parallel to the path of the train rather than cross at designated crosswalks. Because the font on the platform signage is too small, the pedestrians do not know when the next train is coming until they are on the platform. After risking their lives crossing the busy intersection, the pedestrian waited for several minutes for the next train. Had they known how much time they had, they could have used crosswalks.
To increase compliance with intersection signals, the system should provide users easy access to departure times of connecting trains and buses. This can be accomplished with a series of large digital screens at the bus and train stops. These screens need to be visible from the traffic intersections, a distance of approximately 300’.
APPROACHING THE PLATFORM
Approaching the platform to the station, people are presented with a series of rules and a "rider alert" warning. Most pedestrians ignore these warnings and focus on the next train times shown in the green circle.
Instead of presenting rules and alerts at the entrance to the station, this information should be presented to people after they have arrived at the station. Here, people have time to read the alerts. We also recommend adding a "XX days since an accident sign" to create a shared sense of responsibility for safety.
SECOND TRAIN COMING
The built environment leads users up a long ramp facing away from oncoming trains. As the users walk up the ramp they are staring directly at an oncoming train on the opposite side of the tracks. When the users see the train coming signals, they associate those signal with the train they have been staring at while walking up the ramp. They will neglect to look over their shoulder for the second train coming.
Approaching the station, the signage should communicate a positive action to "look both ways." All non-critical information should be withheld until people reach the station. This rendering also shows a "yellow brick road" concept to indicate the recommended route for approaching the station and crossing the tracks.