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The number of pedestrians hit and killed on U.S. roads has surged to the highest level [PDF] in almost three decades, new data indicates, while suggesting that a rise in SUVs and smartphone use may be to blame.
Last year, 6,227 pedestrians were killed in road fatalities — a 51 percent increase compared to 2009, according to a preliminary estimate published Thursday by the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA). The D.C.-based non-profit said the 2018 figure is the highest recorded since 1990.
Five states—Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia and Texas—accounted for 46 percent of all pedestrian deaths, despite representing just 33 percent of the U.S. population, according to Census data. California had the largest number, at 432.
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U.S. Pedestrian Road Deaths Reach Highest Toll Since 1990, Report Says
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The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
Some bachelors want a meaningful overnight relationship.
(Score: 1, Flamebait) by Revek on Friday March 01 2019, @05:38PM (13 children)
Walked in to traffic looking at his phone, would you?
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(Score: 2) by NewNic on Friday March 01 2019, @06:04PM (9 children)
Little Billy was hit by an SUV which killed him, when a sedan might not have.
lib·er·tar·i·an·ism ˌlibərˈterēənizəm/ noun: Magical thinking that useful idiots mistake for serious political theory
(Score: 0, Troll) by Runaway1956 on Friday March 01 2019, @06:13PM (2 children)
Little Billy was hit by an SUV which killed him, when an asteroid might not have. If wishes were SUV's we'd all have one.
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 01 2019, @06:32PM
Damn how many SUV's do you buy??
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 01 2019, @09:33PM
The difference is that an SUV sits up higher, which both makes it harder to see shorter people and tends to hit people above their center of mass, causing them to be knocked over and run over rather than going over the hood of the car.
In neither case is this something that's good for people, but the SUV collisions tend to be worse because of that in addition to the extra mass and the fact that SUV drivers are assholes.
(Score: 0, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 01 2019, @07:18PM (5 children)
If little Billy had actually looked both ways before he crossed, and had he noticed the oncoming SUV and not stepped out in front of it, he never would have been hit.
There seems to be a large subset of pedestrians who disconnect their entire "self-preservation" reflex in their brains when it comes to crosswalks and they simply barrel forward, without looking (with or without cell phones as a distraction) under the assumption that because they have the right of way, the cars will stop. The part that does not work here is when they fail to notice the car that is 100 feet away that needs 150 feet to stop for them, and step out in front of it anyway, resulting in getting hit.
(Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 01 2019, @07:45PM (3 children)
Or, maybe the drivers should get off of their cell phones and slow down to a reasonable speed when they see a crosswalk or intersection ahead.
There seems to be a subset of drivers who think it is okay to drive while interacting with cellphones and who think that anything other than a car on the road is not worth their attention.
(Score: 0, Disagree) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 01 2019, @08:48PM
Just because someone is an idiot, does not mean everyone in that group are idiots.
I've said this before, there should be no right of way to pedestrians. Why, because even if pedestrians were right and had a moral/ethical/whatever right to do it, when they get hit by a car, atleast 2 lives get destroyed.
(Score: 2) by hemocyanin on Saturday March 02 2019, @12:19AM (1 child)
No. We should ban vehicles. Think of the children.
(Score: 2) by DeVilla on Monday March 04 2019, @05:37PM
Oh. I thought this was working towards banning walking.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by urza9814 on Friday March 01 2019, @08:09PM
Not necessarily. A few weeks back I was walking down the street, past the local park. As I approached the park entrance (not an intersection, no traffic lights or anything, like any driveway/parking lot), I looked back to ensure no cars were turning in. Seeing only one big SUV, not too far back and without a turn signal active, I figured it was safe to cross. As I was about halfway across, that SUV came barreling past, not more than six inches in front of my face, and didn't even slow down. Went flying by so fast I could barely read the big POLICE logo along the side...
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 01 2019, @08:45PM
That might be part of it. But, at least around here, I've noticed far more people jaywalking than they did even a few years ago. There's also far more people texting while driving and more people driving in general.
I'm not sure if that's the case in other areas, but a lot of this has to do with the increasingly anti-police attitude of the city officials. The cops just don't seem interested in enforcing the law these days in large part due to a bunch of whiny people of color that are upset about being cited for illegal activities.
The extra congestion and increasingly dangerous intersections that the city DOT is purposefully encouraging can't be helping. Last month, I was riding with my mother and a pedestrian ran out in front of her car just before she was about to pull away. Thankfully she saw him just in time to involve running him over, but the intersection was only like 50 feet away. Unfortunately, I doubt very much that he learned his lesson.
(Score: 2) by Revek on Saturday March 02 2019, @03:46AM
Ohhh someone is feeling the truth. Not troll, just a modern upgrade to a old saying.
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(Score: 2) by DeVilla on Monday March 04 2019, @06:48PM
How would I know if Little Billy walked into traffic if I'm looking at my phone?