Pedestrians by Linda Stowe
When I have a question, I want an answer. And more often than not, I’ll plant my flag on the first one that presents itself. Sometimes that works out, most times it does not. That’s because life is not black and white. One size does not fit all.
When it’s not my problem, I can spend a good amount of time thinking about various causes that might create a situation. It’s like a puzzle and I like the mental challenge. This morning the New York Times podcast addressed pedestrian traffic deaths which, after being in decline for years, have recently skyrocketed.
Specifically, the discussion was about what might have caused this upsurge. The trend began in 2009 so that was a good starting point. Investigators wondered what happened around that time. One thing that happened was the widespread use of smartphones which might distract drivers. That would have been the point where I would have said, there is our answer. Let’s move on to the next question.
But no. It is not as simple as that. We do not see this trend in other industrialized countries, yet people there also have access to smartphones. In fact, the number of pedestrian deaths in those countries continues to fall.
There are other factors to consider: Most (85%) of the increase occurs after dark, times when drivers cannot see as well or might be distracted or impaired. And Americans drive bigger cars, which take longer to brake. Also, only about 1% of new car sales in America have manual shift transmissions, whereas that rate is 70-75% in other industrialized countries. So, Americans drive bigger cars and have one hand free to use their phones. Also, we have more cars, and our roads are built for fast driving.
But wait, there’s more. Most of the increased deaths are occurring in sunbelt regions (e.g., Florida, which has experienced a 70% spike in pedestrian traffic deaths). What do we have in those warmer climates? Well, there are more senior citizens who may have impaired walking and driving issues. And there are more cities with scant pedestrian-friendly infrastructure.
Beyond that, the percentage of deaths of homeless populations is high, so there are more homeless people on the roadway, particularly in areas with reduced pedestrian safety. Studies show that the increased death rates are more likely to occur in areas where the poverty rates are higher. Perhaps this is because of the increased number of pedestrians using roadways that are meant only for cars.
Clearly, this is a complex issue, one of countless other issues facing our country. Instead our legislators are hard at work at holding Hunter Biden accountable for his sins.
