Maryland Ranks No. 26 In US For Pedestrian Deaths: Report

Crossing the street in some Maryland suburbs is a life or death endeavor with multiple factors: Immigrant residents settling in neighborhoods built without crosswalks, distracted cellphone users not paying attention to traffic, drivers on congested streets who simply don't see pedestrians dodging vehicles, and language barriers that may make warning signs ineffective.

Walking across the street is more dangerous than it has been in more than a quarter-century, according to a new report by the Governors Highway Safety Association. On Wednesday, the group released its yearly “Spotlight on Highway Safety” report based on preliminary state data and estimated that nearly 6,000 pedestrians were killed by automobiles for the second straight year.

In Maryland, there were an estimated 41 pedestrian deaths between January 2017 and June 2017. That’s a rate of 0.68 per 100,000 people and the 26th highest rate in the country.

Last year, a Capital News Service analysis of pedestrian accidents showed at least 138 pedestrians have been struck by vehicles in the past eight years on a two-mile stretch of University Boulevard that runs through Langley Park in Prince George's County. Eight have died — one of those was killed after being hit by a county police car.

Nearby in College Park, three fatal pedestrian accidents from January through July 2014 were part of a string of eleven accidents in the area during this time. Officials pushed the State Highway Administration for changes that were made to the road including a $191,000 investment for fencing and a new pedestrian signal. Other changes included reducing pedestrian wait times at signals, lowering the speed limit to 25 mph in this area and increasing use of speed cameras. No pedestrians have died since then.

Maryland is trying to curb the number of pedestrians through education efforts including Street Smart campaigns and Walk Smart in Ocean City during its busy tourist season. State money has been used to support police officer overtime for speed enforcement in high pedestrian corridors. Most enforcement projects are restricted to areas where traffic signals have been deployed and are accompanied by education campaigns.

In all, states reported a total of 2,636 pedestrian deaths during the first six months of 2017, the group said. After adjusting that data to conform with historical trends, the organization estimated total pedestrian deaths in the United States at 5,984. That number is nearly identical to 2016, which saw 5,987 pedestrian deaths.

“Two consecutive years of 6,000 pedestrian deaths is a red flag for all of us in the traffic safety community. These high levels are no longer a blip but unfortunately a sustained trend,” Executive Director Jonathan Adkins said in a release. “We can’t afford to let this be the new normal.”

The Governors Highway Safety Association is an organization comprised of state highway officials from around the country.

Just five states — California, Florida, Texas, New York, and Arizona — accounted for 43 percent of all pedestrian deaths during the first six months of 2017, the group said. Those states only represent about 30 percent of America’s population.

Pedestrians now account for roughly 16 percent of all motor vehicle deaths, the group said. That number was 11 percent just a few years ago.

A growing number of smartphone users across the country and the legalization of marijuana in several states could be driving the spike, the Governors Highway Safety Association said.

“While the report does not find or imply a definitive link between these factors and pedestrian deaths, it is widely accepted both smartphones and marijuana can impair the attention and judgment necessary to navigate roadways safely behind the wheel and on foot,” the release said.

Among the group’s other conclusions:

• The number of pedestrian fatalities increased 27 percent from 2007 to 2016.
• During the same period, all other traffic deaths decreased by 14 percent.
• Pedestrian deaths as a proportion of total motor vehicle crash deaths increased steadily, from 11 percent in 2007 to 16 percent in 2016.
• Pedestrians now account for a larger proportion of traffic fatalities than they have in the past 33 years.
• The number of states with pedestrian fatality rates at or above 2.0 per 100,000 population has more than doubled, from seven in 2014 to 15 in 2016.
• From 2015 to 2016, pedestrian fatalities in the nation's ten largest cities increased 28 percent (153 additional fatalities).

The organization used data provided by the State Highway Safety Offices and the U.S. Census Bureau.

Click here to read the full report.

Patch reporters Colin Miner and Dan Hampton contributed to this report.

PHOTO: A man looks for a break in traffic to cross University Boulevard in Langley Park in May 2017. In the past eight years, at least 138 pedestrians have been hit and eight have died on a two-mile stretch of the state highway that runs through the low-income, immigrant community outside Washington, D.C. (Capital News Service photo by Rebecca Rainey)