> Traffic and pedestrian fatalities in the U.S. climbed sharply for over a decade before leveling off last year. The reasons for that rise are complicated, and likely include road and sidewalk design, an increase in speeding and a corresponding decline in law enforcement, as well as the growing size and weight of vehicles.
Ahem, what about drivers staring at their damn phones?
Can we increase penalties for distracted driving that injures people? My neighbor was killed walking down the sidewalk by a moron texting in his lap, and he got probation..
Saying this as someone in a jurisdiction that has increased penalties for driving and using your phone, and implemented camera technology to detect drivers doing this.
Without wanting to minimise the other factors in any way, my personal peeve is the ridiculous size of behemoth SUVs and what in my country are called "utes" (used by trades-people and country-folk initially but now becoming a status symbol for urbanites). These things have ballooned so much that often, when I'm in a sedan next to one I feel like I've pulled up next to a monster truck. The reduced near-field visibility, the fact that the sheer height means pedestrians are more likely to be dragged under the vehicle than thrown over. I am looking forward to a day when this insane fad is history (I'm not optimistic).
As a fellow citizen of a ute loving nation, I think the rapid inflation of these bloated moon rovers was really just softening us up for the introduction of the full sized Dodge, Ford, and Chevy abominations I'm starting to see regularly. I swear there is some correlation between what feels like increasing hostility and the popularity of 'aggressive' vehicles. Dog help us all.
In EU the number of pedestrian fatalities decreased between 2010 and 2019 from 5962 to 4628 per year and kept at around 20% proportionally the whole time [1].
EDIT: in 2022 it was even better - around 3700 per year and 18.1% of the total traffic casualties [2].
You can also see per-country stats and graphs. It's been steadily decreasing basically everywhere in EU.
It's the US car-centric culture that is the problem, not the phones.
I fully agree with distracted driving, but also think this beyond the car size though. I think those should be limited, but will be met with that’s going to be met with resistance. The US is just completely hostile to pedestrians both in how they build roads and how drivers think of pedestrians. I’m all for rules for car sizes for other reasons but this is cultural problem the US has and needs to solve.
This last month I’ve been in around Paris and felt SO much safer walking and respected by drivers than I do walking around my house a city in twin cities.
Ahem, what about drivers staring at their damn phones? Can we increase penalties for distracted driving that injures people? My neighbor was killed walking down the sidewalk by a moron texting in his lap, and he got probation..