Orlando Improves Pedestrian Safety After Fatalities

Orlando has undertaken substantial street redesign initiatives to improve pedestrian safety, a response to a concerning national trend of rising pedestrian fatalities. The city's efforts aim to create safer environments for those on foot, addressing infrastructure deficiencies that have contributed to accidents. These changes are part of a broader national conversation about road safety, spurred by reports highlighting dangerous urban planning.

Smart Growth America's "Dangerous by Design" report, an annual assessment of pedestrian deaths and unsafe roads, ranks Charleston, a major city near where a pedestrian fatality occurred, as 12th deadliest for pedestrians in the United States. This report underscores the severity of the issue, with data showing a significant increase in pedestrian deaths since 2009. In 2024, the most recent year for which final federal data is available, 7,080 people were killed by vehicles while walking in the U.S.

While the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration noted a 6% decrease in fatalities from 2022, attributing it to a return to pre-pandemic levels, the "Dangerous by Design" report's researchers, Eric Cova, Jaibin Mathew, and Heidi Simon, point out that fatalities remain 72% higher than in 2009. This increase outpaces both population growth and the rise in vehicle miles traveled. The researchers suggest that the recent slight dip in fatalities may be partially due to increased traffic congestion as the effects of COVID-19 lockdowns waned.

The "Dangerous by Design" report also highlights the inadequacy of existing infrastructure, such as the "Greenway Walkway" mentioned in a case where a pedestrian was struck by a vehicle traveling at 55 mph. The walkway, marked "use at your own risk," had been a subject of community complaints for years, with no safe crossing points available for miles. This situation exemplifies the critical need for improved pedestrian infrastructure and safer road designs, a challenge that cities like Orlando are now actively addressing through their street safety programs.