Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) issued a press release Monday November 14, 2011 with information about the number of pedestrian accident fatalities so far in 2011. The numbers are cause for concern in Greene County and throughout Missouri. MoDOT is concerned for the safety of pedestrians and wants to raise awareness. And Greene County Missouri pedestrian accident lawyers want to raise awareness too. So with that in mind, here are some of the statistics to help you be aware of the dangers.
As of the end of September, 2011, 54 pedestrians have died as a result of pedestrian traffic accidents in Missouri. One reason for concern is that 57 was the total number for 2010 pedestrian fatalities. And if the current pace is maintained (six pedestrian deaths per month), Missouri will end 2011 with 18 more pedestrian deaths, for a total of 72 pedestrians killed in motor vehicle related accidents.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Numbers
In 2009, the latest year of data available from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 4,092 fatal pedestrian accidents were reported in the United States. There were 33,808 persons killed in all reported traffic accidents nationwide.
In Missouri, there were 68 pedestrians killed that same year. While this number is too high, Missouri still fared better than many states: the top four states for number of pedestrian fatalities in 2009 were Florida (466 killed with a fatality rate of 2.51 per 100,000 population), California (563, 1.52 rate) Texas (344, 1.39 rate), and New York (306 at 1.57 rate). Missouri was ranked 25th with a rate of 1.14 pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 population.