While many assume that pedestrian accidents are most common in dense urban areas, the GHSA reports that 60 percent of pedestrian fatalities happen on high-speed arterial roads, meaning wide multi-lane roads other than freeways. These surface-level roads carry heavy traffic at high speeds, but pedestrians often need to walk along or cross them.
However, cities space intersections with crosswalks far apart on arterial routes because intersections slow vehicular traffic, giving these pedestrians few places to cross safely. Most vehicle-versus-pedestrian incidents happen away from the intersections, where drivers do not expect people to cross.
Critics argue intersections and other opportunities for pedestrians to cross safely are often too far apart, prompting pedestrians to take their chances crossing multiple lanes of high-speed traffic. Sidewalks provide some protection, but adding crosswalks and slowing vehicle speed limits works better. In addition, because three-quarters of fatal pedestrian accidents happen after dark, improving street lighting can help drivers see people trying to cross the road.
The problem extends beyond these arterial surface roads, however. Freeways with restricted pedestrian access accounted for 17 percent of pedestrian fatalities. The GHSA recommends Move Over laws that require motorists to slow down or change lanes when approaching stopped vehicles to reduce the number of stranded motorists, police officers, and construction workers killed alongside roadways.