The number of pedestrian deaths in 2015 was higher than ever registered.
(Mirror Daily, United States) – Picture the following situation. You go out, have a few drinks, realize that you’re in no state to drive, and decide to walk the few blocks home. Morally, it is the best decision you could take, but statistically, you have serious chances of ending up being involved in a deadly car accident. The streets are not safe for pedestrians, or so says the latest report.
Last Tuesday researchers published a report sponsored by the Governors Association of Highway Safety. According to the study, the number of pedestrian deaths increases every year by ten percent. The team involved in the study declared that the number of victims is larger than it was ever recorded.
The author of the report, Richard Retting, says that the results are more than troubling. Instead of eliminating the dangers propagated onto the pedestrians, they only increased significantly.
There are a number of factors that contribute to the rise in the number of casualties.
Cheaper Gas
The streets are not safe for pedestrians because gas has become increasingly cheap. More and more people decide to take their car out for a ride, take longer trips and, in general, use their vehicles more.
But it would be wrong to blame the significant rise in pedestrian deaths only on a healthy economy. It’s like Retting said, you can’t just say that gas is cheaper, so we’re expecting a spike in the number of planes crashing.
There are additional, underlying causes.
Cell Phone Use and Abuse
The streets are not safe for pedestrians, not when they walk around with their head buried in their cell phones. A distracted pedestrian that meets an equally texting-engaged driver results in a fatal accident.
Cell phones are abused by both the people behind the wheel and those who bump into each other, or in front of a car while feverously tipping.
Alcohol
But no matter how cheap the gas is, or how advanced the mobile devices are, the main culprit behind the unreasonably high pedestrian death rate is alcohol.
According to Retting’s study, 34 percent of pedestrians killed in a car-related accident had an above-average alcohol concentration in their blood.
On the other side, approximately 15 percent of drivers decide to get behind the wheel while impaired. This amounts to a roughly 49 percent of deaths related in one way or another to alcohol use and abuse.
The streets are not safe for pedestrians, and the authorities are doing everything in their power to reduce the number of casualties.
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