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To improve the visibility and safety of pedestrian and bicyclist crossings, traffic-safety professionals across Minnesota have installed the Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon (RRFB) and Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon (PHB) at numerous locations around the state. The purpose of this evaluation was to determine the safety benefits, if any, for pedestrians and bicyclists after installation of an RRFB or PHB. This report included a before-after analysis as well as a cross-sectional analysis for each type of beacon with a corresponding group of comparison sites. The before-after analysis found that installation of an RRFB resulted in a 67% decrease in fatal crashes and a 62% decrease in bicyclist crashes. Installation of a PHB resulted in a 53% decrease in suspected minor injury crashes, a 67% decrease in pedestrians crashes, and a 50% decrease in bicyclist crashes. The results of the cross-sectional analysis did not indicate that these reductions were statistically significant compared to similar reductions in the control group. Still, the decreases in severe crashes and crashes involving non-motorists at RRFBs and PHBs indicated that both types of beacons could be effective safety treatments.

Between 2010 and 2022, 83 J-turn intersections were installed on Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) roadways. The J-turn is an alternative intersection layout that is intended to provide safety benefits by limiting the number of points within an intersection that two or more vehicle paths might intersect. Before-after analyses at J-turns and control sites were conducted and compared. With the installation of a J-turn, the analyses found decreases in fatal and serious injury crashes, angle crashes, and fatal and serious injury angle crashes. The large decreases in severe crashes at J-turn locations indicate the J-turn can be an effective safety treatment. The analysis also found J-turns have lower crash rates for key crash types as compared to low-volume interchanges and rural, high-speed signalized intersections.

Between 2010 and 2020, 49 Reduced Conflict Intersections (RCIs) were installed on Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) roadways. The RCI is an alternative intersection layout that is intended to provide safety benefits by limiting the number of points within an intersection that two or more vehicle paths might intersect. Both a before-after analysis at RCIs and a cross-sectional analysis comparing RCIs to untreated intersections were conducted. With the installation of an RCI, both analyses yielded statistically significant decreases in fatal and serious injury crashes, angle crashes, and fatal and serious injury angle crashes. Statistically significant increases in rear-end crashes were found. Both analyses showed no significant changes to sideswipe crashes or total crashes. Based on these results, severity shift in crashes has been seen at the RCIs in Minnesota. The overall number of crashes have not changed, but the high-severity crashes have been reduced while property damage crashes have increased. The large decreases in severe crashes at RCI locations indicate the RCI can be an effective safety treatment.

By the end of 2022, nearly 450 roundabouts were installed on Minnesota roadways. An evaluation of traffic safety at roundabouts published by MnDOT in 2017 showed substantial decreases in fatal and serious injury crashes for all users at intersections after installation of a roundabout. The safety effects of roundabouts are largely due to geometric design practices that reduce the speed of motorized vehicles as they approach and travel through the intersection. The purpose of this evaluation is to determine if the safety effects seen in the 2017 evaluation still apply to roundabouts with higher levels of use by pedestrians and bicyclists. This evaluation conducts a before-after analysis of 95 roundabouts in Minnesota and an analysis comparing roundabouts to untreated intersections. With the installation of a roundabout, this study finds that the before-after analysis results in a 40% decrease in all severity injury crashes for all roadway users, a 70% decrease in fatal and serious injury crashes for bikes and pedestrians, and a 15% decrease in total pedestrian bike and pedestrian crashes. The results of the comparison analyses suggest roundabouts have better safety performance than through-stop and traffic signal-controlled intersections and similar safety performance to locations with all-way stop control. The results of this evaluation thus indicate that roundabouts can be an effective safety treatment for pedestrian and bicycle crashes.