Evaluation of a community wayfinding signage project in Hawai'i: Perspectives of pedestrians and bicyclists

Wayfinding signs can support active transportation by guiding pedestrians and bicyclists onto safer routes to community destinations. The purpose of this study was to assess the perceptions of pedestrians and bicyclists related to a community-wide wayfinding signage project implemented in Kailua, a suburban community in Hawai'i and an increasingly popular tourist destination. Wayfinding signs consisted of standard bicycle route confirmation and decision signs showing direction or distance to popular community destinations, including beaches and parks. Intercept surveys (n = 244) were conducted immediately and five months after the wayfinding signs were installed. Overall, 50.5% of pedestrians and 63.3% of bicyclists reported seeing a wayfinding sign along their route. Among those who saw a sign, 41.9% reported that it helped with route decision making. Logistic regression models revealed that those walking and bicycling the route for the first time had higher odds of seeing a wayfinding sign [OR (95% CI): 2.59 (1.07-6.27)]. Being a bicyclist, female, and non-resident were significantly associated with using a wayfinding sign. One-third (33.1%) of surveyed community residents agreed that seeing the wayfinding signs encouraged them to walk or bicycle more often in their community. Lastly, the majority of residents (82.6%) and non-residents (86.5%) thought the wayfinding signs were beneficial to the community. These evaluation findings indicate that wayfinding signs are useful environmental supports for active transportation, especially for those who are traveling along new routes. Additional programs or promotional activities are needed to complement wayfinding signage interventions to further encourage walking and bicycling trips.