Pedestrian-car accidents down overall, but men die more

Did you know that many more men than women die in pedestrian-car accidents? According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 69 percent of fatalities in pedestrian accidents were among men.

And did you know why?

A new study published in the journal Injury Prevention may help answer these questions. It turns out that men are more likely to cross multi-lane highways where traffic speeds are faster. Women, it turns out, may be more cautious about exposing themselves to the danger posed by high-speed traffic.

Men and women apparently walk similar distances, so distance walked by each gender is not a significant contributor to the higher rate of fatalities. The study suggested that another possible reason for the higher rate of deaths is that men are more likely to be walking drunk.

Most people, both male and female, know that it’s not safe to drive drunk because of the risk of car accidents. However, the results of this study indicate that some men, at least, do not have the same knowledge about drunk walking.

Despite this, pedestrian accident fatalities overall have declined in recent years. In 1995, there were 5,585 pedestrian deaths recorded by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA). In 2010, there were 4,280 pedestrian fatalities reported, a decline of 23 percent.

Source: walkinginfo.org, “Pedestrian Crash Facts,” 2010.