The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration reported that Connecticut saw 47 pedestrian deaths in pedestrian accidents in 2014. However, the Auto Insurance Center also reviewed NHTSA data and issued a report identifying the states that were the most dangerous for pedestrians in 2014. America as a whole saw 5,000 pedestrian deaths that year. Intoxication was blamed as being involved in a disproportionate number of deaths in these crashes.
According to the study, New Mexico had the most pedestrian fatalities per capita. Half of all victims in a fatal pedestrian accident from 2008-2011 in that state’s most populous Bernalillo County were reportedly legally impaired at the time of the accident. A drunk driver was involved in 12 percent of all the accidents involving a pedestrian. Additionally, New Mexico residents are identified as being among the most serious binge drinkers in the United States.
While Connecticut had a higher than normal per capita average of pedestrian deaths, the state did not fall within the list of the 10 most dangerous or 10 least dangerous states. Some of the lowest ranking states were Florida, Delaware, Nevada, Louisiana, South Carolina, Arizona, Alabama, Alaska and New Jersey.
Minnesota was ranked as the safest pedestrian state. It also has the lowest drunk driving rates in the country. Except for Delaware and Montana, male pedestrians had a higher fatality rate than females in the nation. 60 percent of pedestrian deaths in Connecticut were male. The Auto Insurance Center argues that males are more likely to engage in binge drinking and other risky behavior. The average age of pedestrians killed in this country was 46.8. The average age in Connecticut was 49.8.
The report also cited the most dangerous intersections in the country for pedestrians. Each of the two deadliest intersections had four fatalities. These were identified as Vincent Street and Pacific Coast Highway in Redondo Beach, California, and Germantown Avenue and West Allegheny Avenue in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Accident victims and their families cannot erase the pain and suffering imposed by a negligent driver. But they may be able to seek compensation in a personal injury lawsuit.
Source: Auto Insurance Center, “The worst places to be a pedestrian,” Accessed Feb. 13, 2016
