TORONTO

Pedestrian injuries are reduced by half with dedicated right-of-way streetcar lanes, a new study by the Hospital for Sick Children has found.

Research has shown pedestrians and motorists are at more risk when the road is shared with streetcars, said the study, which focused on the safety impact of streetcar lanes, such as those installed on St. Clair Ave. W.

There was a 48% decrease in the rate of collisions on St. Clair between Weston Rd. and Yonge St. since the dedicated lanes were completed in 2010.

“Our findings suggest that dedicated streetcar lanes may be safer for pedestrians compared to a mixed traffic streetcar route and should be considered by city planners,” Dr. Andrew Howard, principal investigator of the study from Sick Kids said.

Police reports show that from 2000 to 2011 there were 23,607 reported collisions between pedestrians and motor vehicles in the city, 441 of them on that stretch of St. Clair.

The study found there was a reduction in pedestrian collisions post-construction, especially at major intersections such as Dufferin St. and Bathurst St.

“Some explanations for this could be better separation of pedestrians from motor vehicle traffic. The barriers along the platforms force pedestrians to cross the street at the light, rather than jaywalk from the middle of the street,” Howard said. “The new design also prevents cars from going straight through St. Clair or turning left from streets where there is no signalized intersection, thereby reducing pedestrian-motor vehicle contact.”

The more widely used mixed traffic model requires passengers to enter and exit streetcars where there may not be lights or other traffic signals, forcing them into a more potentially dangerous situation.

“The goals of the St. Clair redesign were to improve transit reliability and efficiency, and our research demonstrates positive impacts on pedestrian safety as well,” Howard said.