As some of our previous posts have explained, the number of fatal pedestrian accidents across the country is on the climb. This trend even runs contrary to last year’s overall trend. In 2018, traffic fatalities declined slightly overall.
According to statistics, pedestrians are much more likely, 50 percent more likely to be exact, to die in a car accident than would be someone protected by the frame of a car. This is not surprising given that cars weigh more, and travel much faster, than do pedestrians. Moreover, pedestrians have no protection from the force of a motor vehicle.
Of course, one must also remember that hundreds of thousands of pedestrians also get hurt after getting struck by a car each year and must seek medical treatment as a result. Oftentimes, this will lead to steep medical bills and lost income.
According to reports, the young and the old are particularly prone to dying in pedestrian accidents. In 2016, 20 percent of all pedestrian fatalities involved victims over the age of 65. Likewise, an additional 20 percent of victims in fatal pedestrian accidents were children and teens under 15-years-old.
While alcohol and drugs often do play a role in these sorts of tragic accidents, it is important to remember that drunk driving is not the only way a motorist can endanger pedestrians trying to cross the street or walking along one of Louisiana’s sidewalks. For example, when motorists travel too fast through areas congested with pedestrian traffic, they increase their chances of causing a car accident with a pedestrian.
Likewise, the faster a vehicle is traveling, the more likely it is that the pedestrian will suffer a serious injury. Pedestrians in or around the Houma area who have been injured in a pedestrian accident may have legal options available to them for recovering compensation for their losses.