"Pedestrian deaths had been declining for decades until 2009, when smartphone sales and data use began to spike"
I don't think this ought to surprise anyone...
Hardly any pedestrian looks before crossing the street.
Modern Kindergartens’ fault.
Recently saw a young girl walking down RR tracks with a cell phone glued to her ear. Great...
many adults are crossing the street not at the curb and they hold child’s hand.
SUVs are tractor beaming pedestrians!
Cell phones combined with booze, drugs and stupidity are helping Darwin thin the excess human herds.
Probably a increase in the weed states.
And then I saw jaywalking in the 'hood.
They take it to a whole new level. They just walk right out in the middle of the street without a care in the world.
wonder where the breakdown of ethnicity is hidden...coinciding perhaps with increase in Illegal Alien population, hmmmm?
I think it’s in part due to pedestrian has the right of way laws that encourage careless walking out into traffic expecting that cars will stop. Some years ago here in Atlanta some idiot woman “militant pedestrian” would walk out into traffic while being filmed unfortunately no one actually ran over her.
Common sense has left the planet (observe the rise in the cult of socialism & global warming) if you see a stream of two ton objects moving toward you at 50 mph.do you 1. Wait until they pass to cross the street or 2. March out in front of the expecting the to stop? It used to be number one, but recently it’s number two
Drivers are getting worse, too. It’s like the only way they can look is straight ahead, no peripheral vision or awareness at all...
I’ll bet legal weed has as much to do with it.
It’s been a while since they’ve blamed SUVs for anything, LOL!
I watched some dumb girl drive past me on the freeway while doing her makeup. She then came within 1 foot of the concrete center divider, yanked her vehicle back to the right as the left wheels came off the ground. A mile later she was back to doing her makeup. Two miles later, she slammed into stopped traffic.
We’re just too stupid to live anymore.
Ah, for the days of gentle pedestrian deaths.
“That’s up 4 percent from 2017 and 35 percent — or more than 1,500 additional deaths — from 2008.
The association says more people are walking to work and they’re more distracted by smartphones.”
Smartphones went widespread and in 2010, which is also when traffic deaths began to increase.
Those who’ve seen what happens to those who go under the wheels, never get hit by vehicles. Those folks have a tenancy to be very careful.
Again, crosswalks, green lights, stop signs, even sidewalks along the roadway etc, mean nothing, zip, zero in regards to pedestrian safety.
If anyone in the US is 3/5th’s of a person it’s these idiots because they’re just not all there.
Until texting and driving becomes an immediate arrest, booking and bail hearing. Along with towing and impound fees, license suspensions, etc.. expect people to keep doing it.