Pedestrian safety perception refers to the subjective sense of security individuals experience when walking in urban environments. This perception is shaped not only by objective risk factors but also by environmental quality, infrastructural conditions, and psychological interpretations of space. Understanding how people perceive safety is critical for planners and policymakers, as it directly influences walking behavior, public space use, and the overall sustainability of cities. Despite increasing attention to pedestrian infrastructure in global research, medium-sized cities in Iran, such as Bushehr, have received limited empirical investigation, even though pedestrian accidents remain a serious concern.

This study aimed to identify and analyze the factors influencing perceived safety in two of Bushehr’s principal urban corridors: Imam Khomeini Street and Ashouri Street. These streets were selected because they present contrasting physical and organizational characteristics, with Imam Khomeini generally offering more structured pedestrian facilities and Ashouri exhibiting fragmented sidewalks and greater exposure to traffic. A quantitative design was adopted, using a researcher-developed questionnaire containing 17 indicators of pedestrian safety perception. Items covered four key domains identified in the literature—sidewalk quality and spatial organization, geometric design and traffic guidance, safety of crossings, and environmental lighting—and were rated on a five-point Likert scale.

To ensure scientific rigor, the content validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by ten academic experts in urban planning and transportation, who reviewed the relevance and clarity of each item. Reliability testing produced a McDonald’s Omega coefficient of 0.966, indicating excellent internal consistency. Sample size was determined using G*Power software, with an expected medium effect size (Cohen’s d = 0.5) and a power level of 95%, which yielded a minimum requirement of 200 respondents. The final sample consisted of 200 residents of Bushehr who were familiar with both streets. Sampling was purposive but controlled for demographic balance in gender and age, acknowledging that perceptions of safety often vary across social groups.

Data analysis proceeded in two stages. First, an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) using principal component extraction and varimax rotation was conducted to identify the latent dimensions of safety perception. The analysis revealed four factors that collectively explained 69.3% of the total variance: (1) Quality and spatial organization of sidewalks, which captured continuity of walking paths, absence of physical barriers, and sufficient width; (2) Geometric design and traffic guidance, encompassing intersection layout, signage, and traffic control devices; (3) Safety of pedestrian crossings, reflecting the presence of marked crosswalks and signals; and (4) Environmental lighting, which measured adequacy and maintenance of streetlights. The factor structure aligned well with existing theoretical models, reinforcing the construct validity of the instrument.

Next, Anderson–Rubin factor scores were calculated to allow for direct comparison of the two streets. Results revealed a consistent pattern in which Imam Khomeini Street scored higher across most factors. In particular, Ashouri Street lagged significantly in sidewalk quality, presence of physical obstacles, and lighting conditions, contributing to a weaker overall sense of safety. Respondents described Ashouri Street as fragmented and poorly maintained, with inadequate crossings and insufficient night-time illumination, whereas Imam Khomeini Street benefitted from continuous pavements and clearer separation between pedestrian and vehicular traffic.

A multiple regression analysis was then conducted to determine the predictive power of the four extracted factors on overall perceived safety. The model demonstrated that only sidewalk quality and spatial organization exerted a significant positive effect (β = 0.461, p < 0.001), highlighting the central importance of basic pedestrian infrastructure. While lighting and traffic guidance influenced descriptive differences between streets, their independent contribution was not statistically significant once sidewalk conditions were accounted for. This suggests that high-quality, well-maintained sidewalks provide the foundational layer of safety upon which other factors build.

The originality of this research lies in its combined methodological and contextual contributions. Methodologically, the study integrated exploratory factor analysis with Anderson–Rubin factor score estimation, enabling a rigorous and unbiased comparison of latent safety constructs. Contextually, it focused on Bushehr—a city with relatively high pedestrian accident rates but little prior empirical attention—thereby broadening the geographic scope of pedestrian safety research and offering locally relevant evidence for decision-makers.

The findings yield several practical implications. Urban managers in Bushehr should prioritize targeted interventions to improve sidewalk continuity, remove physical barriers, and ensure regular maintenance of pavement surfaces. Although lighting and traffic control measures did not emerge as independent predictors in the regression model, respondents emphasized their importance for night-time security, suggesting that these features still merit investment as complementary measures. The superior performance of Imam Khomeini Street provides a model that can inform future upgrades of Ashouri Street and similar corridors.

In summary, this study underscores that pedestrians’ sense of safety is strongly rooted in the physical quality and organization of sidewalks, more so than in other infrastructural attributes. By focusing on the fundamentals of pedestrian infrastructure, cities like Bushehr can enhance perceived safety, encourage walking, and create more inclusive and sustainable urban environments. Future research could build on these findings by employing mixed methods, incorporating qualitative interviews or spatial observations, and exploring longitudinal changes following infrastructural improvements to further refine evidence-based urban policies.