Pedestrian traffic deaths rise in Indiana despite national drop
There were fewer pedestrian deaths on U.S. roads in the first half of 2024 compared to a year prior, but Indiana was one of nearly two dozen states that saw an increase.
Why it matters: Cities are trying to reduce pedestrian deaths — so many of which are utterly avoidable — through "Vision Zero" programs, lower speed limits, "traffic calming" road designs and more.
Driving the news: 3,304 pedestrians were killed on roads nationwide between January and June 2024, per a new Governors Highway Safety Association preliminary report.
That's 88 fewer deaths than during the same period in 2023, but 1,072 more than during the same period in 2014.
Stunning stat: "Between the first half of 2014 and 2024, pedestrian deaths have risen at a rate almost seven times faster than population growth," the report finds.
Zoom in: There were 49 deaths in Indiana in the first half of last year, according to the report.
That's 10 more than the same period in 2023 — a 26% increase.
Indy Pedestrian Safety Crisis, a group that tracks local pedestrian deaths, injuries and other safety incidents, recorded 41 deaths in the city last year.
State of play: The Indianapolis City-County Council established a Vision Zero Task Force last year with the goal of "eliminating all fatal and serious injury crashes on city streets by 2035."
It is tasked with creating and adopting an action plan by July 1.
The latest: During a City-County Council meeting last month, task force members discussed recent traffic calming projects that may serve as models for future Vision Zero work — such as the makeover of a section of College Avenue and the Michigan Street road diet.
At that meeting, a row of chairs in the audience was left empty and labeled with the names of several pedestrians killed in the last year.
Jakob Morales, the advocacy committee chair for Bike Indianapolis, told Fox 59 he feels his group's concerns are being taken seriously but that they'll continue to monitor the city's progress.
"People will continue to be killed," he said, "so we need to act urgently."
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