Protecting Individuals.
Prioritizing Recovery.

Injuries, fatalities on the rise for bikers and pedestrians

On Behalf of | Jul 20, 2017 | Car Accidents

Pedestrians and bicyclists are two groups of people that are vulnerable out on the road. When cars collide with them, any pedestrian and/or bicyclist is likely to suffer terrible injuries. These injuries could change their lives forever, or leave them suffering and in immense pain for an extended period of time. And when this happens as a result of negligence on the part of a motor vehicle driver, then the legal consequences must reflect that.

Given all of this, you would rationally think that as we progress as people, things only get better. As such, road safety must be improving, right? Unfortunately, for bicyclists and pedestrians, it does not appear to be that way.

Data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that pedestrian fatalities and pedestrian injuries increased when comparing the years 2006 and 2015. Fatalities jumped from 4,795 to 5,376 (12.1 percent increase) over these years, and pedestrian injuries jumped from about 61,000 to about 70,000 (14.8 percent increase) over these years.

Bicyclists were in a better position than pedestrians, but the numbers still got worse from 2006 to 2015. 772 bicyclists died in 2006, but 818 bicyclists died in 2015. Injuries went up from about 44,000 in 2006 to about 45,000 in 2015.

With distracted drivers out there and increasingly-busy and bustling streets, it is important for drivers of all vehicles to be aware of their pedestrian and bicyclist counterparts out on the road.

Source: Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center, “Pedestrian and Bicyclist Crash Statistics,” Accessed July 18, 2017

Archives

RSS Feed