Minneapolis Pedestrian Accident Attorney

We currently represent clients who have been hit by cars when walking to work, walking from their cars in a retail parking lot to a nearby store and walking from a coffee shop onto a marked crosswalk trying to cross the street on a “walk” sign. What all of these people had in common was that they were doing the right thing from a safety standpoint, but it did not protect them from being struck by a motorist who did not stop or yield to them.

Some statistics from the National Highway Traffic Association and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety:

• About 5,000 pedestrians are killed and another 64,000 are injured in motor vehicle accidents every year in this country.
• On average, a pedestrian is injured in a traffic accident every 8 minutes.
• On average, a pedestrian is killed in a traffic accident every 111 minutes.
• Statistically, males are more likely to be involved in a pedestrian/motor vehicle accident than females.
• About 69 percent of pedestrian fatalities are male, and the injury rate for males is approximately 58 percent higher than for females.
• The vast majority of fatal pedestrian/motor vehicle collisions occur on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday in later evening hours.
• In 2005, the proportion of pedestrian deaths was much greater on Friday and Saturday. Also, 45 percent of the pedestrian deaths in 2005 occurred between 6 pm and midnight.
• Children between the ages of 5 and 9 are at the greatest risk because their small size makes them harder to see. Also, their ability to hear a moving vehicle does not develop until age 10.
• The elderly are also at high risk for being involved in pedestrian – car collisions.
• Generally, pedestrian accidents and injuries are higher in urban areas – more people walking and more people driving.
• There is a higher ratio of injuries and fatalities in rural areas because of higher impact speeds on rural roads.

Unfortunately, there have been increasing number of accidents involving pedestrians and motor vehicles. The local media has carried stories of these accidents.

Communities around the metropolitan area have begun to step efforts to increase pedestrian safety and increasing accessibility for pedestrians. Local news outlets have covered these stories as well. The city of St. Paul is looking for ways to make the area around Macalester College safer by adding a median to Snelling Avenue. The City of Burnsville is striving to make a walkable downtown. Efforts to make a nice pedestrian-friendly downtown also means educating drivers as well as creating cross walks and increasing lighting.

Have you or someone you know been injured in a pedestrian accident? If so, contact a Minneapolis pedestrian accident attorney at Howard Sussman today!

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