WI Pedestrian Deaths In 2022 Spiked Over Earlier Years: Study

WISCONSIN — The many Wisconsinites who get around their community by walking, whether for pleasure or necessity, were confronted with a particularly deadly year in 2022 as fatal crashes with vehicles grew by 50 percent.

That's according to a report released last week by the Governor's Highway Safety Association, a group that pointed toward a growing trend of pedestrian deaths in America. While Wisconsin saw 50 pedestrian deaths on the roads in 2021, that grew to 75 in 2022, preliminary data from the GHSA show.

Milwaukee was marked by several high-profile pedestrian deaths in 2022.

In September, a 94-year-old woman was fatally struck when trying to cross Prospect Avenue near Brady Street, police said. Weeks prior, a hit-and-run killed a 32-year-old man near Brady Street and Franklin Place, police said.

In December 2022, a car pinned down and killed a 75-year-old woman near Santa Monica Boulevard and Silver Spring Drive in Whitefish Bay. A 23-year-old man was killed in a downtown Milwaukee hit-and-run in August 2022.

The report altogether counted over 7,500 pedestrian deaths in 2022 across America, marking the deadliest year for sidewalkers since 1981. In 2010, pedestrian deaths stood at 4,302, or 13 percent of all traffic deaths at the time, the GHSA report said. By 2021, pedestrians made up nearly 18 percent of traffic deaths in the country.

GHSA contributed the rise of pedestrian deaths to several factors.

Pedestrians have long been more likely to die at night when visibility is lower, especially in areas where sidewalks and other protections aren't available. About 77% of pedestrian deaths happened at night in 2021, according to the report. Nearly 70% of pedestrian deaths happened in an area without sidewalks that same year.

"Since 2010, nighttime fatal crashes have increased by 86%, compared with a 31% rise in daytime pedestrian deaths," GHSA said.

The type of vehicle is also a factor. Deaths by SUV have increased 120% over the last decade, although passenger cars were involved in a majority of deaths.

"Because of their greater body weight and larger profile, SUVs and other light trucks can cause more harm to a person on foot when a crash occurs," the report said.

The report also found racial disparities in pedestrian deaths. The latest data available between 2018 and 2020 showed that deaths of Black, non-Hispanic pedestrians rose from 19 to 20%, and Hispanic from 20 to 21%. Deaths of white pedestrians fell from 41 to 47%.

"The saddest part is that these crashes are preventable. We know what works — better-designed infrastructure, lower speeds, addressing risky driving behaviors that pose a danger to people walking. We must do these things and more to reverse this awful trend and protect people on foot. Enough is enough," GHSA CEO Jonathan Adkins said in a news release.