Study of Obstacles and Restrictions of Pedestrians for Commuting on Foot in the City of Tehran: A Qualitative Study

Backgrounds and Today, providing a safe and secure environment for the passage of pedestrian is a special consideration in urban transport planning. Walking is the most simple and natural form of commuting and is recommended for health and reducing air pollution and traffic. However, there are many challenges in this area. The aim of this study was to investigate obstacles and problems of pedestrians in providing strategies for the promotion walking in different parts of the Tehran.
This study was carried out through a qualitative method using semi-structured interviews with 30 residents in different regions of Tehran. The interviews were analyzed by content analysis method after implementation. The sampling method was purposive and individuals were selected from pedestrians and drivers in different age groups. To validate data, credibility, transferability, conformability and dependability parameters were considered.Data were analyzed using the MAXQDA-10 software.
In this study, the average age of participants was 38 years. Half of the participants were female. Seven main themes were extracted. The main themes extracted in this study were space-related issues, safety issues, security issues, cultural issues, management weaknesses and pedestrian's rights supportive laws, physiological and behavioural issues, and weather factors.
The accurate segregation of pedestrian pathway from the vehicles, making it more safe with appropriate pavements, removal of obstacles in the sidewalks, creating urban furniture, increasing the urban attractions, environmental improvements and creating a clean and desirable space, creating standard bridges passageways and underpasses for pedestrians can have a positive impact on safe commuting on foot.