Over a 10-year period, the number of pedestrians killed in motor vehicle crashes on America’s roadways increased by a staggering 55 percent, according to a new report from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. The dramatic rise in deaths from 2009-2018 followed three decades of declines.
In Massachusetts, there were 725 pedestrians killed during that ten-year period, as well as 122 in Rhode Island and 439 in Connecticut. California, with just under 7,500, accounted for the largest number of the 51,000 deaths. In the Bay State, 17,000 pedestrians were injured, with Boston, Springfield, Worcester, New Bedford and Brockton seeing the greatest number of fatalities and injuries. Pedestrian injuries occurred most often between the hours of 3pm and 7pm, and seniors are especially at risk: over the decade in Massachusetts more than 200 of the 725 killed were 65 or older.
“Each of these numbers represents a life lost,” says Mary Maguire, AAA Northeast Director of Public and Government Affairs. “We should all be working overtime to help protect our vulnerable road users.”
The AAA Foundation report found:
- A total of 6,374 pedestrians were killed in crashes with motor vehicles in 2018, representing a 55% increase from 4,109 a decade earlier and the highest number since 1990.
- Pedestrian fatalities among people ages 60-69 more than doubled over the past decade, from 436 in 2009 to 943 in 2018. Deaths of pedestrians in their fifties, sixties, and seventies all increased faster than the national average for pedestrians of all ages. The number of children and teens killed as pedestrians decreased slightly—the only groups for whom pedestrian fatalities decreased.
- Three of every four pedestrians killed on U.S. roads in 2018 were struck in darkness. Fatalities in darkness accounted for the vast majority of the increase in pedestrian fatalities over the past decade. The number of pedestrians killed in darkness in 2018 was larger than the total number of pedestrians killed in any and all lighting conditions in 2009, 2010, or 2011.
- 84% of all pedestrian fatalities in 2018, and 84% of the overall increase in pedestrian fatalities over the study period, occurred on roads with speed limits of 30 mph or higher.
- Pedestrians killed at non-intersection locations without crosswalks rose 70% over the decade.
- 32% of all pedestrians who died had a blood alcohol concentration equal to or greater than the legal limit for driving. However, sober pedestrians’ fatalities increased by a larger amount over the study period, both in raw numbers and on a percentage basis. The number of sober pedestrians killed in 2018 was nearly as large as the total number of pedestrians killed in 2009.
AAA urges state and local transportation planning authorities to prioritize pedestrian safety and address this rising problem. AAA recommends that:
- Sidewalks should be installed in areas that are frequently traveled by pedestrians, with an increased focus on older pedestrian safety.
- There be more emphasis on traffic education in schools at all levels, including school safety patrols, adult crossing guards, police and traffic control signs, signals, and markings.
- State and local governments are encouraged to develop traffic safety public information programs aimed at communities with large populations of new immigrants unfamiliar with local traffic rules and customs.
You can find the complete AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety research brief here.