Types of pedestrians most at riskChildren. Children under the age of 14 accounted for a significant proportion of deaths from pedestrian accidents. Pedestrians affected by drugs or alcohol. Crossing devices that don't match the speed at which urban pedestrians want to travel can also encourage poor pedestrian behavior.
In fact, pedestrians who regularly use certain paths or crosswalks are likely to reduce waiting time at crosswalks. Motor vehicles were twice as likely to kill male pedestrians as female pedestrians per vehicle mile. Pedestrians who have been drinking are at an even greater risk of dying in traffic, accounting for 39 to 60 percent of all pedestrian deaths. According to the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles (SCDMV), there are three types of people most likely to suffer serious and life-threatening injuries in pedestrian accidents.
Consequently, pedestrians often exceed sidewalk capacity, encouraging pedestrian use of streets and making Alcohol-related accidents occur when pedestrians with disabilities enter a non-designated location or without looking at traffic. According to the CDC, about 47% of pedestrian accidents that result in fatalities involve alcohol poisoning for the driver, pedestrian, or both. Some pedestrians may comply with walking regulations because of their personal preferences or habits, while other pedestrians estimate the risk of being caught by the police based on the benefits of aimlessly crossing the street. Pedestrian crashes occur most frequently in urban areas, where pedestrian activity and traffic volumes are higher compared to Pedestrians walking on these roads are at greater risk of being involved in a fatal accident due to the amount of traffic present on these routes.
Poorly marked junctions can cause pedestrians to cross when oncoming traffic has the right of way, increasing the risk of an accident occurring. The higher likelihood of killing a male pedestrian than a female for all types of vehicles is not unexpected, given that male gender is a well-established risk factor in population-based pedestrian mortality rates. The higher the pedestrian and vehicle traffic, the greater the chances that pedestrians and vehicles will meet on the street.
