Bellevue drivers can earn $100 in October by testing a smartphone app that warns them when pedestrians step into crosswalks.
The city is recruiting volunteers for a federally funded pilot that pairs a downloadable phone app with midblock crosswalks already equipped with flashing lights. W
hen a person walking or rolling activates the crosswalk system, the app sends real-time audible and visual alerts to nearby drivers, according to the city's announcement.
Bellevue is partnering with the University of Washington and Applied Information Inc. on the study, which aims to reduce crosswalk crashes.
Researchers plan to measure whether the alerts improve driver awareness, increase yielding behavior and reduce vehicle speeds near crosswalks.
Each session runs about 90 minutes. Participants download the app and drive a predefined 30-minute route in Bellevue.
A temporary in-vehicle camera records driving responses, and a brief interview follows.
Volunteers who complete the session receive $100.
The pilot is funded through the federal Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) grant program.
In 2025, Bellevue secured more than $1.8 million in grant funding for citywide safety projects under its Vision Zero initiative, according to a June 2, 2026, City Council update. The council's stated goal is to eliminate traffic deaths and serious-injury collisions on Bellevue streets by 2030.
Streets posted at 30 mph or higher make up 25% of Bellevue's road mileage but account for 88% of fatal and serious-injury crashes, the same council update showed.
The crosswalk app pilot focuses on a different piece of the problem: the moment a pedestrian enters a driver's path at midblock crossings.
The city's 2026 Vision Zero Action Plan also includes signal operation enhancements that use real-time detection technology at intersections to reduce conflict between vehicles and pedestrians, according to the council update.
Transportation Director Andrew Singelakis framed the city's broader safety push on Aug. 13, when Bellevue expanded its speed camera program. "We know that addressing speed is important to improving traffic safety on Bellevue's streets," Singelakis said at the time.
The crosswalk app pilot and the speed cameras both fall under the city's Vision Zero umbrella, but they target different risks. The cameras enforce speed limits on high-crash corridors. The app alerts drivers to pedestrians in real time at equipped crosswalks.
Drivers interested in participating can sign up through the University of Washington's volunteer interest form, linked from the city's Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) Crosswalk Pilot page.
