Pedestrian protection at convenience stores
 

by Barrett C. Miller http://www.safety-engineer.com
 
  Each year more than 10,000 pedestrians are killed by automobiles. Pedestrian deaths account for 20 to 30 percent of all motor vehicle fatality statistics.(1) Many happen when cars override the curb and hit customers at convenience stores.

Parking lot accidents are predictable. We know that people do unexpected and destructive things with their cars. A foot can slip off the clutch. Vehicles slip into gear and overshoot parking places, and drivers hit the gas when they expect to hit the brake.

One automobile with a factory defect reportedly jumps into reverse gear unexpectedly.

Convenience stores have special problems because of the large number of customers they serve and their patron mix. Efforts to maximize profits from available space have led to the introduction of many new products and services. Along with food and refreshments, some stores now offer gasoline, video cassettes, and entertainment games on the premises.

School children play video games and drink soft drinks at the same stores that sell beer by the can in "sippin' sacks."* Store designers should consider the special behaviors of children(2) and the anticipated behaviors of adults when they share a facility. Customers require protection at specific traffic points. These points are where vehicles change directions, where pedestrians walk across the vehicle path, and where vehicles park.

We also know many adverse things about the drivers who enter parking lots. A statistically significant portion are drunk, high on drugs, or visually impaired. This is especially true during evening hours. Some drivers suffer from emotional or mental disorders, and some are immature and inexperienced.

Extent of the problem
It is difficult to determine the size of the problem. Anecdotal evidence suggests that convenience store accidents are epidemic. We examined police records in one city with a population of 500,000 people. The search produced two cases where the vehicle jumped the sidewalk and struck convenience store patrons during one year. In other incident the same year, a car hit a customer standing six feet inside the store.

The building contractor for Jiffy Food Stores provided his chain's history. Before installing protective devices, the 300 stores under his control had three to five run-ins per week.(3) Run-ins are incidents in which a vehicle actually crosses the sidewalk and strikes the building. he did not include those cases in which the vehicle jumped the curb but stopped without hitting the building.

The records of a glass company which serves one major chain were examined. They show the replacement of five windows per week caused by automobile damage. The glass company manager estimates that he sees six vehicles each year driven all of the way into the store.

Because accidents are predictable in parking lots, convenience stores should include pedestrian protection in their original design.

Lack of codes
No published code requires pedestrian islands or barriers where large numbers of pedestrians and vehicles interact on private property. Most building codes limit their regulation to the sidewalks that border the street. They do not require barrier protection across the face of the building where the majority of accidents happen. City codes do not require builders to pain the curb yellow to aid depth perception. When no law or code describes the store owner's duty, common law is important.

The courts say that store owners are not the insurers of the health and welfare of their customers.(4) They have an obligation to protect their customers only from those hazards which are foreseeable. Can a storekeeper "reasonably foresee"(5) a runaway vehicle? If so, they must take effective action to protect the customer.

Some corporate managers are responding to parking lot accidents with a maximum commitment. Others are doing very little. one corporation conducted a regional study in 196 convenience stores.(6) It showed that only 38% of all stores had installed wheel bumpers or post barriers for pedestrian protection.

The study provides only a limited perspective. The largest chain had no effective program for pedestrian protection. Little Champ and Jiffy Marts provided the most comprehensive protection. Fifty-three percent of Little Champ Stores and 51% of Jiffy food stores used vertical protection barriers. Only 5% of another chain of convenience stores provide vertical barrier protection for their customers. The study mentioned earlier did not observe the use of terraced vertical segregation, or other devices found at some stores.(7) In addition, the study did not document the use of barriers in liquor stores. A limited study of barrier protection at liquor stores in the area shows that almost 75% provide some form of pedestrian protection.

Some strategies
There are four protective strategies:(7)
1) Vertical systems isolate pedestrians with elevated walkways; 2) Horizontal systems provide wide walkways or spaces to allow the pedestrian to escape an oncoming vehicle; 3) Time protection plans limit access to an area-cars and pedestrians cannot enter an area at the same time; 4) Vertical post barriers put steel or concrete posts at strategic points to create pedestrian islands. Post barriers are being accepted as the only adequate protective device.

Convenience stores tested a number of different vertical protection barriers and placement locations. no single device has been completely accepted. Most stores began experimenting with six-inch steel pipe set in concrete(8) but found they required replacement too often.

Some chains use railroad ties for barriers; others use sections from old telephone poles. A five-inch rectangular steel pipe filled with concrete is used as a barrier at some new stores. These barriers sit four and a half feet apart.

Some chains are attempting other innovations. Jiffy is introducing protected handicapped parking and Little Champ is testing sculptured concrete barriers to provide complete pedestrian islands.

The United States Department of Transportation studies the installation of pedestrian protection devices. Their studies show the most efficient time to install pedestrian protection devices is during the construction of new facilities.(8)

Jiffy Food Stores began installing railroad ties across the face of store sidewalks in 1981. While their efforts initially focused on new construction, older stores are now being retrofitted. No vehicle has penetrated the pedestrian zone in any Jiffy Food Store with vertical barriers, but some older stores without barriers continue to have problems.

Conclusion
Parking lots at convenience stores create special safety problems for pedestrians. This is because of the high number of pedestrians and vehicles present, and the known adverse behavior of drivers. the highest risk area for pedestrians lies across the front of the store where cars park.

No published standard exists. However, we documented an industry practice in the southeastern United States. This practice consists of the installation of vertical traffic barriers across the face of stores.

It is imperative that convenience stores upgrade their pedestrian protection systems. Barriers have already reduced property loss and personal injury, but 62% of all stores still do not provide protection.

References
1. Fee, Julie, European Experience in Pedestrian and Bicycle Facilities. U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration.
2. Zeger, Charles. Use of Pedestrian Conflict Analysis for Hazard Assessment in School Zones. National Academy of Science, Washington, D.C. 1980.
3. Interview, James Smoke. As found in Ricketson v. Southland- Corporation, In The Circuit Court of Duval County Florida, 86-3385.
4. Schatz v. 7-Eleven Inc. Florida, 128 Southern Reporter 2nd, 901.
5. Johnson v. Hatoum, Florida, 239 Southern Reporter 2nd, 22.
6. Study, Pedestrian Protection Systems At 196 Convenience Stores in Florida, Prepared for Southland Corporation and found in Ricketson v. Southland Corporation. In the Circuit Court of Duval County Florida, 86-3385.
7. A Manual for Planning Pedestrian Facilities, U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, June 1974.
8. Traffic Control Devices Handbook. U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration p. 5-4, 1983.
9. Manual On Uniform Traffic Control Devices. U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration. Chapter V. 1978.

Bibliography
Liveability, Urban Streets: Managing Auto Traffic in Neighborhoods. U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration 1976.
Khisty, C. Assessing the Built Environment for Pedestrians Through Behavior Circuits, as found in Highway Information Systems, Visibility, and Pedestrian Safety. National Academy of Science, Washington, D.C. 1983.
A Manual to Determine the Benefits of Separating Pedestrians and Vehicles. Transportation Research Board, National Research Council, Washington, D.C. 1981.