Denver Metro Among Deadliest In US For Pedestrians

DENVER, CO – Colorado saw 590 pedestrian deaths between 2008 and 2017 and has been ranked the 29th most dangerous state in the country for pedestrians. Meanwhile, the Denver metro area ranked as the 59th most dangerous metro in the country for pedestrians (out of 100), with 352deaths in that period.

That’s according to a new report released Wednesday by Smart Growth America. The Washington, D.C.-based organization says it advocates for people who want to live and work in great neighborhoods and believes in “smart growth solutions.” In the 2019 edition of “Dangerous By Design,” the authors say more than 49,000 people were hit and killed by drivers in America between 2008 and 2017. That’s about 13 people every day.

“It’s the equivalent of a jumbo jet full of people crashing — with no survivors — every single month,” the report said. And that number is growing.

In the past decade, pedestrian deaths climbed 35 percent, with 2016 and 2017 accounting for the two highest years since 1990.

“What this report shows is that our streets aren’t getting safer,” the authors wrote.

The report ranks states and metro areas using an index that measures how deadly it is for pedestrians based on the number of deaths. The index accounts for population as well as the share of people who walk to work.

The researchers highlighted that pedestrians in the South are particularly unsafe, with the region accounting for nine of the 10 most dangerous states for pedestrians.

Florida, with an index score of 182, ranked as the most dangerous state for pedestrians. The “Sunshine State” is home to a whopping eight of the 10 most dangerous metros, including Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, the most dangerous metro in America.

Most Dangerous States For Pedestrians

1. Florida
2. Alabama
3. Delaware
4. Louisiana
5. Mississippi
6. Georgia
7. New Mexico
8. Texas
9. Arizona
10. South Carolina

The researchers said the reason pedestrians are killed most often in the “Sun Belt” is that the region saw much of its growth during the age of the automobile.

“Previous research by Smart Growth America found that in general, the most sprawling metropolitan areas with wider roads and longer blocks typically cluster in the southern states,” the report said. Academics have linked sprawling growth patterns to traffic-related pedestrian deaths and traffic-related deaths overall.

Denver's Vision Zero initiative rolled out last year, aimed to cut pedestrian deaths. In 2018, the program installed of more than 19 miles of bike lanes and four new pedestrian signal crossings. Between 2011 and 2015, there were a total of 1,924 reported crashes in Denver that involved pedestrians, according to the city's data. Denver traffic fatalities have risen steadily over the past few years, with 58 in 2018.

During the 2011-2015 timeframe, the following were the worst intersections in Denver for pedestrian crashes:

• 20th Street & Market Street
• Colfax Avenue & Broadway
• 13th Avenue & Broadway
• Federal Boulevard & Kentucky Avenue
• Colfax Avenue, Park Avenue & Franklin Street
• Colfax Avenue & Colorado Boulevard

According to the city, East Colfax Avenue had the most pedestrian crashes of any corridor in the city. Between 2011 and 2015, there were 195 crashes on the corridor, equivalent to 7.1 crashes per mile per year. Federal Boulevard, Colorado Boulevard, Broadway, Lincoln Street,
20th Street, and Speer Boulevard also had a high number of pedestrian crashes, the city said in the Vision Zero report.

Federal money and policies, the Smart Growth America study's authors said, contributed to America’s dangerous roads, and now they’re calling on the federal government to lead the charge in prioritizing safe streets. Among their calls to action, the group urged lawmakers in Congress to adopt a “strong, federal Complete Streets policy” that requires state transportation agencies and metro planning organizations to tailor their plans for the most vulnerable users.

It’ll also take a cultural shift, said Deborah Hersman, former president and CEO of the National Safety Council.

“One fatality on a U.S. air carrier in nine years, and everyone in this room knew about it,” she said in the report. “So why do we underreact to hundreds of tragic deaths every day on our roads?"

Patch national staffer Dan Hampton contributed to this report.

Photo credit:Spencer Platt/Getty Images