Overview

At some point in the day, everyone is a pedestrian. Unfortunately, pedestrian injuries and fatalities remain high. In 2022, 7,522 pedestrians were killed and more than 67,000 pedestrians were injured nationwide. NHTSA raises awareness of the dangers to pedestrians and provides tips to keep pedestrians safe.

Pedestrians

Everyone Is a Pedestrian

70 A pedestrian was killed every 70 minutes in traffic crashes in 2022

Everyone has different preferences when it comes to transportation, but at one time or another everyone is a pedestrian.

When drivers maintain safe speeds and practice other safe driving behaviors, safer walking environments are created for you, your loved ones and others in your community.

TRAFFIC SAFETY FACTS & DATA PUBLICATIONS

Pedestrians

Know the Basics—Pedestrian Safety

8 Safety Tips for Drivers

1. Look out for pedestrians everywhere, at all times.
2. Use extra caution when driving in hard-to-see conditions, such as nighttime or bad weather.
3. Slow down and be prepared to stop when turning or otherwise entering a crosswalk.
4. Yield to pedestrians in crosswalks and stop well back from the crosswalk to give other vehicles an opportunity to see the crossing pedestrians so they can stop too.
5. Never pass vehicles stopped at a crosswalk. There may be people crossing where you can’t see.
6. Never drive under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.
7. Follow the speed limit, especially around people on the street, in school zones and in neighborhoods where children are present.
8. Be extra cautious when backing up and look for pedestrians.

8 Walking Safety Tips

1. Follow the rules of the road and obey signs and signals.
2. Walk on sidewalks whenever they are available.
3. If there is no sidewalk, walk facing traffic and as far from traffic as possible.
4. Cross streets at crosswalks or intersections. Look for cars in all directions, including those turning left or right.
5. If a crosswalk or intersection is not available, locate a well-lit area where you have the best view of traffic. Wait for a gap in traffic that allows enough time to cross safely; continue watching for traffic as you cross.
6. Watch for cars entering or exiting driveways, or backing up in parking lots.
7. Avoid alcohol and drugs when walking; they impair your abilities and your judgment.
8. Embrace walking as a healthy form of transportation – get up, get out and get moving.

Pedestrian Bystander CareWatch the video 

Finding and Creating Walkable Communities

• Resident’s Guide for Creating Safe and Walkable Communities
  Want to improve the walkability of your neighborhood? Learn from the examples of other communities working to improve pedestrian safety.
• Walkability Checklist – English (PDF, 237.66 KB) | Spanish (PDF, 879.65 KB) | Asian Languages
  How walkable is your community? Take a walk with your child and find out for yourselves.

Keeping Your Kids Safe While They Walk

• Prevent Pedestrian Crashes: Parents and Caregivers of Elementary School Children (PDF, 165.61 KB)
  Elementary school children are very active and impulsive. Although they’re learning and growing, school-age children 10 and younger still need guidance and supervision when playing and walking near traffic.
• Five Tips to Keep Your Children Safe on Their Way to and from School
  Strengthen your traffic safety knowledge: Teach and reinforce your children’s pedestrian safety habits.
• A Kid’s Guide to Safe Walking (PDF, 3.04 MB)
  This colorful pamphlet will help you teach young children safety tips for crossing the street and things to remember when walking.
• Tips for Preteens & Teens: Prevent Pedestrian Crashes (PDF, 3.30 MB)
  Remind your preteens and teens that walking around traffic requires the same critical thinking skills as riding a bike or driving a car: Stop, look left-right-left, be safe and be seen.

Walking Safely and Staying Fit as You Age

• Stepping Out as an Older Adult — Be Healthy, Walk Safely
  Share this resource with your aging parents to help them maintain their safety while walking for exercise or running errands.

NHTSA is dedicated to promoting safe behaviors on our nation’s roads

NHTSA’s pedestrian safety programs focus on the safe system approach, which has five main components:

• Safe People: Encourage safe, responsible behavior by people who use our roads, and create conditions that prioritize their ability to reach their destination unharmed. 
• Safe Speeds: Promote safer speeds in all roadway environments through a combination of thoughtful, targeted, context-appropriate outreach campaigns, as well as judicious enforcement.
• Safe Roads: To encourage safer behaviors, and to facilitate safe travel by the most vulnerable users, design roadway environments to accommodate human mistakes and injury tolerances.
• Safe Vehicles: Expand the availability of vehicle designs and features that help to prevent crashes and minimize the impact of crashes on both occupants and non-occupants. 
• Post-Crash Care: Enhance the survivability of people in crashes through expedient access to emergency medical care. Create a safe working environment for vital first responders and prevent secondary crashes through robust traffic incident management practices.

NHTSA demonstrates its dedication to promoting safe pedestrian and motorist behavior through our educational material, leadership and expertise to communities across America. We also conduct public awareness campaigns, such as Everyone is a Pedestrian, raising awareness of the dangers to pedestrians.

Please join us in reducing traffic safety risks to pedestrians and promoting programs and countermeasures to save the lives of all road users on our nation’s roadways. 

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, part of the U.S. Department of Transportation