Raised Median Island (Median Refuge Island)

A raised median island is a protected median in the centre of a two-way street, designed to reduce the overall width of the adjacent travel lanes and provide a safe space for cyclists and pedestrians to cross the road.

Application/Considerations/Outcomes

• Appropriate for local, collector, and urban arterial streets
• Can be used as a traffic calming device without crossings for pedestrians and cyclists
• Installed where a cycling facility crosses a moderate to high volume or high-speed streets
• Streets with high pedestrian / cyclist volumes and a lack of safe crossing opportunities
• At signalized or unsignalized intersections
• A median can act as a diverter to prevent cut-through traffic on a bicycle facility

Image sources: NACTO