A recently released report shows conclusively that walking in America is getting more dangerous every year. In fact, 2019 was the most deadly year to date! Data from the first six months of 2019, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) predicts there were 6,590 pedestrian deaths that year, which would be a 5% increase over the 6,227 pedestrian deaths in 2018. The 2019 death total is the highest number of pedestrian deaths in over 30 years.
“In the past 10 years, the number of pedestrian fatalities on our nation’s roadways have increased by more than 50%,” said GHSA Executive Director Jonathan Adkins. Adkins went on the say “This alarming trend signifies that we need to consider all the factors involved in this rise, identify the high-risk areas, allocate resources where they’re needed most, and continue to work with local law enforcement partners to address the chronic driver violations that contribute to pedestrian crashes,” Adkins said in an association news release.
In 2019 pedestrians are projected to account for more than16% of all traffic deaths up from a reported 12% in 2009. Pedestrian deaths have had a significant rise while all other traffic deaths are up less than 2%. In fact, in the first half of 2019 overall traffic deaths were down over 3% according to the research report. There are several factors that contribute to the rise in pedestrian deaths and awareness may prevent you from becoming a victim.
The vast majority of pedestrians die on local roads, at night and away from intersections. This alone suggests the need for safer road crossings and making pedestrians and vehicles more visible. In just the past 10 years nighttime deaths have increased by about 67% while daytime deaths increased by 16%. Driving behavior like speeding, impaired driving, drowsy driving and especially distracted driving are also major reasons for this increase. Pedestrian deaths from these causes accounted for nearly half of all deaths.
Anyone walking needs to remain aware of their surrounding at all times. Many of us have seen someone walking in a crosswalk, head down, headphones on, texting and not paying attention to their surroundings. Passenger cars are the largest category of vehicles involved in pedestrian deaths however pedestrian deaths over the past decade involving SUVs increased at a faster rate (81%) than those involving passenger cars (53%). “Each year, thousands of additional people are dying in pedestrian crashes compared to a decade ago,” said report author Richard Retting, national practice leader for safety and research at Sam Schwartz Consulting. “Following 30 years of declining pedestrian fatalities, there has been a complete reversal of progress,” Retting said in the release. “Pedestrians are at an inherent disadvantage in collisions, and we must continue to take a broad approach to pedestrian safety.”
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