  In this paper we present a new approach to the solution to a generalized
version of Hughes' models for pedestrian movements based on a follow-the-leader
many particle approximation. In particular, we provide a rigorous global
existence result under a smallness assumption on the initial data ensuring that
the trace of the solution along the turning curve is zero for all positive
times. We also focus shortly on the approximation procedure for symmetric data
and Riemann type data. Two different numerical approaches are adopted for the
simulation of the model, namely the proposed particle method and a Godunov type
scheme. Several numerical tests are presented, which are in agreement with the
theoretical prediction.
