For the first time since the pandemic, the number of pedestrian deaths in the USA is falling

TUESDAY, June 25, 2024 (HealthDay News) — A total of 7,318 American pedestrians were killed by motor vehicles in 2023 — a 5.4 percent decrease from 2022 and the first such decline since the end of the pandemic, according to data released Monday by the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA).

Despite this decline, however, the number of pedestrian fatalities in 2023 is still 14.1 percent higher than pre-pandemic levels. Nevertheless, the news is somewhat encouraging, said GHSA Executive Director Jonathan Adkins.

“The decline in pedestrian fatalities offers hope that a new trend is beginning after years of rising deaths,” he said in a GHSA news release. “Every death is tragic and preventable. We know how to improve pedestrian safety – more infrastructure, vehicles that protect pedestrians, lower speeds and equitable traffic enforcement. All of this and more will be needed to move the numbers in the right direction.”

The GHSA report also offered insights into how and where pedestrians are most commonly killed:

• There have been no major changes in the types of vehicles involved in pedestrian fatalities, although the percentage of fatalities involving light commercial vehicles (SUVs, pickup trucks and vans) has increased as they account for a larger share of the motor vehicle market.

• At night, you’re much more likely to be hit by a car (78 percent of pedestrian deaths in 2022) than during the day, and “the number of pedestrian fatalities at night nearly doubled from 3,030 in 2010 to 5,798 in 2022,” according to the GHSA. That’s a much larger increase than daytime deaths.

• Sidewalks are critical. In 2022, 66 percent of pedestrian deaths occurred in places without sidewalks. “Sidewalks can protect pedestrians by providing physical separation between them and motor vehicle traffic,” the GHSA said. “But in many parts of the country, they are missing or in poor condition.” Three-quarters of pedestrian deaths in 2022 did not occur at an intersection.

• People are most at risk when walking on what the GHSA calls “non-freeway arterial roads,” which accounted for 60 percent of deaths in 2022. But even this year, 1,300 Americans died while walking along freeways. “Stranded motorists exiting their vehicles, first responders and tow truck drivers are all examples of pedestrians killed on freeways,” the GHSA said. “All states have highway speeding laws, but they are difficult to enforce.”

• Alcohol is also all too often a factor. “In 2022, 30 percent of pedestrians ages 16 and older killed in motor vehicle crashes had a blood alcohol content of 0.08 or more,” according to the GHSA. That was true for 19 percent of drivers who killed a pedestrian.

What can be done to reduce these numbers and prevent senseless tragedies on America’s roads? According to the GHSA, “traffic enforcement cameras and the inclusion of homeless people,” who are particularly at risk of dying on the side of the road, are critical. Expanding or repairing sidewalks could also help, as could digital alerts that warn drivers about vehicles parked on the side of the road.

More information