BOSTON, Mass. — Taking a walk might be more dangerous than most people think. A recent report by Walk Massachusetts found 78 of the state’s 369 traffic deaths last year involved pedestrians.
“I was standing on the curb on Harvard Street, and the next thing I knew, I woke up on the ground looking up at the sky,” said Toni Lansbury of Brookline.
She was walking home from a dog park and about to cross the street when a car suddenly slammed into her.
“I had multiple fractures to my pelvis and a concussion.”
Her dog Daisy was badly injured too, including having her hip broken.
“We’ve seen that pedestrian deaths have risen more than 80% since they reached a low point in 2009,” said Jessica Cicchino from the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety.
“Some of the things that we’ve seen changing over the years are more of these deaths occurring in the dark at night. We’ve seen more of them occurring at higher speeds on busier roads, and we’ve seen taller and larger vehicles in the fleet, which we know are more dangerous to pedestrians.” Christian Milneil, the editor of StreetsBlogMASS, a non-profit that covers local transportation issues, said many local communities are
Redesigning roads that have poor safety records for walkers and bikers.
“Several cities in Massachusetts have adopted a Vision Zero Policy, which sets targets to eliminate roadway deaths. It sort of acknowledges that drivers make mistakes, and so we should design our roadways in ways that really minimize those mistakes.”
Boston 25 News met Milneil in the vicinity of the intersection of Tremont and Berkeley Streets in Boston’s South End.
He said the city redesigned the area in 2022 after two pedestrians were killed there.
New features include raised crosswalks that slow traffic and heighten the level of pedestrians so they are easier for drivers to see.
Concrete barriers are now placed near crosswalks to keep cars from parking too close to them and creating a visual obstruction.
Traffic was reduced from four to two lanes to reduce speeding.
“It’s more involved than a basic paving project, but these measures are, as transportation projects go, relatively affordable,” added Milneil.
At the end of the day, changing behavior can play a big role in keeping everyone safe.
For example, drivers shouldn’t sail through a blinking crosswalk on Brookline’s Beacon Street like our camera captured.
And pedestrians should wait for a walk signal before they cross a busy street in West Roxbury, like we observed.
Lansbury worries drivers are just too distracted today.
“Do not rely on the walk sign or the crosswalk because what I think now is, I imagine every single person is on their phone in their car. I mean, honestly, I don’t think I’ll ever get over it. It was so unexpected.”
Last year, the federal government adopted a rule regarding automatic emergency brakes that include pedestrian detection.
They’ll be required on all passenger cars and light trucks sold in the United States starting in 2029..
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