New York continues to lead most states in pedestrian deaths

New York leads the country in many categories, although not all are positive. One of these categories is pedestrian accident fatalities. Each year, the Governors Highway Safety Association releases a report entitled “Spotlight on Highway Safety: Pedestrian Traffic Fatalities by State.”

The most recent report noted that once again, New York had among the highest rates of pedestrian accident deaths nationwide. Of all the pedestrian deaths that occurred in 2013, 43 percent happened in just four states: New York, Florida, Texas and California.

According to the report, pedestrian fatality rates stayed roughly the same between 2013 and 2014. Commenting on the study results, the GHSA’s executive director noted that “This is clearly a good-news, bad-news scenario. While we’re encouraged that pedestrian fatalities haven’t increased over the past two years, progress has been slow. Protecting pedestrians is a priority for GHSA and our members; we’re determined to drive the number down to zero.”

New York’s pedestrian death rate was high in and of itself, but it was also high as a function of overall motor vehicle fatalities. Pedestrians accounted for 28 percent of all motor vehicle deaths in New York, which is second only to the District of Columbia.

As the GHSA’s executive director noted, the pedestrian fatality rate could be and should be non-existent. One death is too many. Hopefully, New York City’s Vision Zero campaign will continue to push us toward this goal.

In the meantime, if your family has been devastated by a serious or fatal pedestrian accident or motor vehicle accident, please seek the help of an experienced personal injury attorney.

Source: Trucking Info, “Report: U.S. Pedestrian Fatalities Remain High,” Feb. 26, 2015