25-02-2025
Missouri sets record for pedestrian fatalities in 2024
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fewer people are drying on Missouri roads overall, but a record number of pedestrian fatalities is making local traffic safety advocates concerned.
Missouri Department of Transportation data shows that there were four percent fewer fatalities on Missouri roads from 2023 to 2024 but 16 percent more pedestrian fatalities over the same time.
It meant a record 148 pedestrians died while walking along Missouri roads or trying to cross them.
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'We're losing over 100 people a year to pedestrian fatalities, and it doesn't need to be that way,' said BikeWalkKC Policy Director Michael Kelley.
'If we know that our streets are dangerous, if we know that our drivers are not as prepared as they should be, then that is a recipe for disaster, and we can make something different but we have to make that choice.'
Pedestrian James Grow wasn't surprised that 75 percent of those deaths happened either in Missouri's bigger cities or at night.
'The first thing that goes to my mind is, was there a distracted driver?' Asked Grow. 'How fast were they going? Did they even see the pedestrian that they hit?'
MoDOT Highway and Safety Traffic Engineer Jon Nelson says the 16% increase catches his attention.
'The first thing it illuminates for me, and hopefully for the rest of us, is that pedestrians are users of the transportation system just like those of us who drive vehicles,' Nelson said.
He says the Siddens Bening hands free law that took effect in 2023, helps change bad driver behavior but that efforts like Kansas City's Vision Zero Initiative help design safer roads.
Kelley says since the pedestrian fatality increase was so high, he expects there will be state money to help improve pedestrian safety.
'Now, what that looks like, it's kind of left up to the states but it's one of the ways that we think we can push MoDOT to do a little bit more to prioritize pedestrians, cyclists and other vulnerable road users,' Kelley said.
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Already, pedestrian islands downtown or bike lines in other parts of town are part of the larger Vision Zero effort.
'I would feel a lot safer riding my bike when there's a curb there,' Grow said. 'Because I feel like a lot of cars seem to be hostile toward pedestrians.'
You can find more information about a Vision Zero meeting in KCK on Tuesday, here.
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