A new 2011 edition of pedestrian accidents in New York and elsewhere throughout the country has now been released by Transportation For America. This report illustrates the whereabouts and other details of the 47,000 pedestrian fatalities, and 688,000 pedestrian injuries, that occurred on our roadways nationwide.
During the next phase of safety measures, Dangerous by Design 2011 will examine the information in an attempt to reverse the problem by coming up with solutions for this epidemic of preventable fatalities. Pedestrian accident have become too much of an accepted occurrence on our nation’s roadways between 2000 and 2009.
Our New York pedestrian accident attorneys recognize that pedestrian accidents happen all too often on our city roadways. There are a number of contributing factors to this epidemic, including driver awareness, pedestrian visibility and roadway design. Perhaps the most effective way for us to reduce the risk of these accidents is to focus inward and correct our lackadaisical driving habits.
The newly released report offers fact sheets that highlight specific statistics for each of our 50 states. The release also comes with a map that allows residents to view their communities to see just how often these pedestrian accidents occur in their own areas.
In the examined years of the released data, more than 3,200 pedestrian were killed while walking the streets of New York. These accidents cost the state nearly $14 billion. Our state ranked 39th for the Pedestrian Danger Index (PDI).
The most dangerous counties, determined from the study’s records, in New York are as follows:
-Kings, 515 pedestrian fatalities.
-New York, 399 pedestrian fatalities.
-Queens, 376 pedestrian fatalities.
A majority of these accident happened along “arterial” roads, which are dangerous for pedestrians to begin with as they are designed to accommodate speedy traffic flow and ignore the needs of on-foot pedestrian and bicyclists.
Ironically, a portion of our federal tax dollars are supposed to go to the production and design of these roads that lack pedestrian safety measures. Less than 1.5 percent of the current federal transportation outlay is meant to better equip these areas for foot traffic. Congress is currently contemplating the elimination of this fund entirely.
Roughly 70 percent of these pedestrian accidents over the last 10 years have happened on roads that are eligible to receive this federal aid or are designed under federal guidelines. Yet, the federal transportation department continues to argue that the design of these roads falls on local and state government.
Federal programs continue to urge state departments of transportation to take the responsibility of these roadways and to focus their efforts on the flow of speedy traffic instead of pedestrian safety.
Residents are urged to contact Congress and voice your opinion in an attempt to get them to rethink their decisions to cut off of the pedestrian safety fund.
Merely hours after the report’s release, Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa and eleven co-sponsors formally introduced the Complete Streets Act of 2011. This is an Act that is meant to create streets that are safer for those who travel by foot, by bicycle, by wheelchair or by public transit. Dangerous by Designed was referenced in his report earlier this week.
The New York City accident attorneys at the Law Offices of Nicholas Rose, PLLC, understand that being involved in a traffic accident is stressful and can come with a legacy of pain and suffering. We would like you to know we are available for a free and confidential consultation if you have been injured in pedestrian traffic accident. To schedule an appointment, call us at 1-877-313-ROSE (7673).
More Blog Entries:
Improvements aim to Reduce Risk of New York City Pedestrian Accidents this Spring, New York Lawyer Injury Blog, April 23, 2011
Fatal New York City accidents on the rise, motorcycle accidents, bicycle accidents and pedestrian accidents of particular concern, New York Lawyer Injury Blog, March 12, 2011
Bicyclists and Pedestrians at high risk for New York City car accident, New York Lawyer Injury Blog, September 22, 2010
