Comparing the microsimulated pedestrian level of service with the users’ perception: The case of Thessaloniki, Greece, coastal front

Abstract

Nowadays, there is a keen interest among societies to improve the quality of life of residents by promoting sustainable means of transport like walking and cycling. Towards this direction, it is important to provide a safe, comfortable and attractive environment for the vulnerable road users (pedestrians, cyclists). This should be reflected both in the objective depiction of the current situation as well as in the subjective viewpoint of the users as it is not unusual that these two dimensions of pedestrian infrastructure assessment (objective vs subjective, calculated vs perceived) differ. Focusing on the abovementioned issue, field measurements were carried out on the coastal front of Thessaloniki, Greece, by filming the actual prevailing conditions at three points of the study area simultaneously, in order to calculate the level of service “before, during and after the peak”. The modelling of these three-time periods was performed using the microsimulation software Viswalk. From the microsimulation, a number of indices were derived which can give an objective estimation of the walking condition in the examined walkway such as the level of service, the average density, etc. In addition, a questionnaire-based survey was conducted to capture the satisfaction and sense of comfort and safety that pedestrians perceive while using the infrastructure. The analysis led to interesting conclusive remarks as, despite the very good level of service that was calculated through the simulation models, a significant percentage of users stated that they feel uncomfortable and unsafe when walking along the coastal front.