Currently, traffic safety on urban roads is a global concern, heavily influenced by pedestrian behavior. Pedestrian safety is particularly pronounced in India due to mixed traffic conditions. Pedestrians, the most vulnerable road users, primarily encounter vehicles when crossing roads. Pedestrians must be able to accurately assess oncoming vehicle speed so that they can cross the road safely. So, the main objective is to study the various factors influencing pedestrian speed misestimation in mixed traffic conditions. We conducted a field study to collect pedestrian speed estimates at two midblock sections in Bhubaneswar city, India. The pedestrians are asked to estimate the vehicle speed before the vehicle passes them. The various factors, like pedestrian age, gender, and crossing from the kerb or median, were collected during the experiment. The results show that the pedestrians tended to underestimate speed rather than overestimate it or estimate it accurately. Approximately 62.33% of pedestrians underestimate vehicle speeds, while 36.46% overestimate them, with only a 1.21% accurate estimate. When the pedestrians estimated the speed of vehicles, they were more inclined to underestimate higher speeds (>35 kmph) and overestimate lower speeds (<20 kmph). Female pedestrians and pedestrians crossing from the median have a higher average under estimation of 9.95 and 7.68 kmph, respectively, compared to male pedestrians and pedestrians crossing from the kerb at 5.65 and 6.17 kmph, respectively. Pedestrians of age group ≤ 20 years are underestimating intensity (11.31 kmph), followed by 31–40, > 40, and 21–30 years as 9.10, 8.52, and 5.27 kmph, respectively.