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Lessons from the road: Safety tech needed to reduce pedestrian, cyclist deaths

Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette

Lessons from the road: Safety tech needed to reduce pedestrian, cyclist deaths

Vehicle safety measures seem to be working, but pedestrian and bicycle deaths are on the rise

Traffic fatalities nationwide decreased last year and are down for the first half of this year, attributable in part to increased safety technologies in vehicles. But pedestrian and bicycle deaths by car both rose last year, leading federal officials to call on automakers for more safety tech help to reduce those figures.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said there were 36,560 vehicle crash fatalities in 2018, down 2.4% or by 913 from the year before. There also was a decline from 2016 to 2017. In the first half of 2019, traffic deaths were down 3.4% from the same period the previous year.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao called the report “encouraging news.” NHTSA Acting Administrator James Owens said, “New vehicles are safer than older ones and when crashes occur, more new vehicles are equipped with advanced technologies that prevent or reduce the severity of crashes.”

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Car companies have installed or have available in most newer models a variety of crash-avoidance technologies, such as automatic braking cameras and lane-changing alerts, as well as occupant safety devices, such as airbags in the front, side and sometimes in the back seats of vehicles.

Other positives worth noting in the report: Alcohol-impaired driving deaths nationwide were down 3.6% last year from the year before, speeding-related deaths were down 5.7%, and motorcycle fatalities were down 4.7%.

But vehicle-related pedestrian deaths jumped 3.4% and bicycle fatalities rose 6.3%. The federal agency reported 6,283 pedestrian deaths last year, the highest in 28 years, according to Consumer Reports. Nearly three-fourths of pedestrian deaths were in the dark and were not at intersections. In four out of 10 cases, the pedestrian had alcohol in his or her system.

Among the reasons given for the increases are walkers distracted by their phones, inappropriate speed limits and too few walking and biking lanes and crossing points.

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NHTSA said it is reviewing its 5-star new-car rating system to consider adding an assessment of safety technologies tied to a vehicle’s detection of pedestrians and bicyclists.

The upside of the federal report is that that vehicle safety measures seem to be working. But it points to a need for more driver and pedestrian safety education as well as new vehicle technology to help prevent crashes with pedestrians and bicyclists.

First Published: November 5, 2019, 11:15 a.m.

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