Pedestrian deaths decline, but remain at record highs (Governing)
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Pedestrian deaths on U.S. roads declined for a second straight year, but remain 48% higher than a decade ago, according to a new analysis from the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA).
In the first half of 2024, there were 3,304 pedestrians killed by drivers, according to the report. That’s down from 3,392 in the first half of 2023 and 3,526 in the first half of 2022, the year with the most pedestrian deaths in four decades. The GHSA publishes the data twice a year, based on surveys of State Highway Safety offices.
“We really try to stay on top of this and call attention to it because we’re very committed to pedestrian safety and making sure the public understands the magnitude of this problem,” says Pam Shadel Fischer, a spokesperson for the GHSA.
Pedestrian deaths in the U.S. were at their lowest in 2009, but crept back up through the 2010s before surging during the COVID-19 pandemic. Researchers have identified a variety of factors that help explain that surge. A reduction in traffic during the pandemic-related shutdowns created more opportunities for people to speed on open roads. Increases in substance abuse led to more impaired driving. Traffic enforcement was down. In addition, the average size and weight of American cars has been trending upward, causing more harm to pedestrians, bicyclists and passengers in smaller cars.
While the number of pedestrian deaths has declined for two years in a row, the reductions pale in comparison to the increases of the preceding years, Fischer says. The figures also vary widely by state. Despite the overall decrease, slightly more states saw an increase in pedestrian deaths than a decrease in the first half of last year. States with the biggest numerical increases in pedestrian deaths were North Carolina, New Jersey and Missouri, while Texas, Florida and California saw the biggest numerical decreases.
California saw 65 fewer pedestrian killings in the first half of last year than it did during the same period the year prior. That reduction accounts for almost three-quarters of the net decrease in pedestrian deaths nationwide during the period. It was a 12.9% reduction in California deaths from the prior year.
“I think we’re making modest progress to reduce deaths and serious injuries on California roads. We welcomed the 12.9% decline in those numbers,” says Samantha DeMelo, a spokesperson for the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS). “For us, the only acceptable number of traffic deaths is zero, so we feel like we have a long way to go.”
DeMelo credited investments in infrastructure improvements and enforcement programs, including partnerships with California Highway Patrol, with stemming the growth of pedestrian deaths. The federal Safe Streets and Roads for All program, created under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, has also helped California cities reduce risk on roadways, DeMelo says. Last fall, California OTS announced nearly 500 grants for safety improvement programs to local governments. DeMelo says the grants represented a 12% increase in funding for projects focused on bicycle and pedestrian safety from the previous fiscal year.
