In 2021, there were nearly 7,500 pedestrian deaths in the United States, equivalent to roughly 20 deaths each day. Let me repeat that, in 2021, there were nearly 7,500 pedestrian deaths, equivalent to roughly 20 deaths each day.
It's a major part of a growing problem which has seen a steadily increasing trend of pedestrian deaths.
More and more, both drivers and pedestrians are distracted.
It’s been well-documented that drivers are distracted by their devices leading to a rise in traffic crashes.
Top 3 Causes of Pedestrian Deaths:
The number one cause is speeding.
The number two cause is failure to yield.
Distractions are the number three cause of pedestrian fatalities.
As pedestrians, we have no control the first two factors.
What You Can do to Stay Safe when Walking
Let’s learn what we can do on the roads to stay safe and put these safety practices into action.
Taking precautions is a must when walking. Let’s face it, you most likely will be walking in your neighborhood and whether urban, suburban, or rural, a good deal of the time you will be walking on or very near a road.
Also, you may find yourself walking at night, or walking in un-crowded isolated areas.
Fact: Nearly 70 percent of all pedestrian accidents happen at night.
Don’t become a statistic! Before you head out on your next walk, put these 22 walking safety tips into practice. One of them may save your life.
With this is mind, remember:
There are two kinds of pedestrians... the quick and the dead! Thomas Dewar
22 Walking Safety Tips
As I talked about in the opening, taking precautions is a must when walking so let’s learn these 22 walking safety tips and begin putting them into practice.
1. Walk Facing Traffic: If you remember only one lesson from this entire podcast please let it be this, if you walk on the side of the road, you must face into oncoming traffic. You need to see what’s approaching you in order to avoid serious injury.
When you walk facing traffic, drivers can see you and you can see them. As you get out and walk more and more, you will get a general sense of what drivers are going to do.
In my experience:
90% of drivers see me and either slow down or move slightly over the center line to give themselves room to pass me.
9% of drivers are clueless or worse… distracted.
These drivers are why you must be facing traffic and take evasive action if necessary.
1% of drivers are just plain dangerous and you must avoid them at all costs.
I’ve jumped the left to avoid getting hit a few times in my life. It’s not a fun experience.
Thank God I saw and anticipated what was about to happen.
2. Be Seen: If you remember only two lessons from this safety list (the first being to face traffic) it’s that you must, must, must wear reflective clothing, and use a flashlight or headlamp when walking at night. 70% of all pedestrian fatalities happen at night. It all comes down to reaction time, and drivers can’t react to what they don’t see.
-Wear a reflective vest! A reflective vest will save your life. Think about how many times you have driven at night or been a passenger in a care, only to see a pedestrian at the very last moment. Put yourself in the driver’s seat…what will make it easier for you to be seen?
-Carry and use a flashlight or better yet a headlamp. Headlamps are now a very common household item and are sold at all local hardware and big box stores.
In the daytime, you should always wear bright colored clothing to be seen by drivers.
There are many reflective vests are very lightweight in fact you can fold them up and put them into your pack your hit pack will carry them in a pocket same thing with the headlamps they're very small so if you start a walk late in the afternoon and you know you're you're feeling great you get out there a little longer now you're heading back home and it's darker but it's always good to have these items with you they will keep you safe and drivers will see you.
3. Crossing Safely at intersections is your responsibility: Don’t assume vehicles will stop!
Yes, I know legally, when pedestrians are in a crossway, cars are supposed to stop… the operative words being suppose-to. Let’s face it, drivers are distracted, obtuse, clueless, concerned about getting that parking stop just beyond the crosswalk, or any of a hundred different reasons. The crosswalk laws do not mean a thing if you are hurled over the hood of a car because you assumed that you have the right of way and the driver would yield to you.
Be safe, be seen, and be smart. When crossing a street, make eye contact with the driver of the car. Give them a wave and make sure they see and respond to you. Use the left, right, left rule. Look left, then right, then left again as this is the side of the road cars will be approaching you.
Watch for turning vehicles. If a driver cut the corner too tight, you may find yourself under a tire.
4. Walk Single file on the road when you are with a partner: While walking side by side is a more natural thing to do, on the road this can only lead to trouble. You are much more exposed to the roadway, and when drivers come around a blind curve, this could give them and you less reaction time to avoid a collision.
5. Be “Boring”: What I mean by this is you should just walk in a predictable manner. No sudden swerving out into the roadway, no randomly waving your arms out. Listen for tip #18 for my cautionary tale.
6. Walk Defensively: Don’t ever challenge a vehicle or ever assume the drivers know when you have the right of way. Also, err on the side of caution. The very size of a car negates all of your rights as a pedestrian.
7. Always carry Identification and important medical information.
8. Don’t walk alone at night (if possible): Working full time, then getting home after the sun sets is common in winter. If you must walk at night please take the following precautions:
9. Keep in contact: When you are walking alone, let someone know where you’ll be walking and when you expect to return, then let that person know that you have returned. This should develop into a habit, and could get you valuable help to you if you miss placing the return call.
10. Be alert: When walking near wooded areas, dense brush, doorways, and courtyards you need to be aware of your surroundings and any possible threats.
11. Don’t wear lots of jewelry or carry much cash.
12. Beware of Strangers: It’s unfortunate to even have to write about this but yes, there is always a possibility that you will draw the unwanted attention of the criminal element. Be prepared. Walk in areas that have other walkers, runners, foot traffic, and cars (believe it or not). Acting alert and aware can convince a bad guy that they should move on. For added peace of mind, carry pepper spray or other protection devices.
13. Protection Devices: I usually carry a small pepper spray clipped to my belt in case a dog (or human) gets too aggressive for comfort. Also, walking stick with a heavy handle can also be a deterant to the criminal element.
The history of walking sticks can be traced back to ancient times when humans used tree branches and twigs as a tool for support and protection. As time progressed, walking sticks became more sophisticated and decorative. In the Middle Ages, walking sticks were used as a symbol of power and status by the aristocracy.
Before carrying pepper spray, whenever I would go hiking in the woods I would use an old 1-iron golf club. It was the perfect height to act as a cane or walking stick. I helped me balance on tough footing, I would hit rocks for fun, it drew a lot of comments from other hikers, and I could swing it ferociously if I needed to protect myself… thank goodness I never had to use it… maybe because I carried it?
14. Keep your earbud volume down: Listening to audiobooks or music while walking is a wonderful way to utilize your time. But, keep the volume at a level where you can also hear your environment. You need to be aware of cars, kids, dogs, and other factors in order to walk safely. You’ll also thank yourself in years to come that your hearing wasn’t blown out while staying in shape.
-A note on headphones: I love to walk and listen to motivational speakers, audiobooks, and music. I listen to some form of audio about 75 percent of the time. I like wired ear buds as they work better with my iphone when I use the dictation function on my notes app to record and thoughts or ideas generated during my walk. And I like earbuds that have volume control on them so I can easily regulate the volume without having to get the phone out of my pocket each time.
15. Avoid Distracted Walking: Hang up the phone! Stop talking, stop texting, stop playing games. If you’re looking at your phone, you’ll will be less likely to anticipate any approaching trouble whether it’s drivers, tripping hazards, passing runners, approaching dogs or, of more concern, potential criminals that view you as a distracted, easy target.
16. If You Walk Your Dog: Keep the leash short so the dog doesn’t dart out unexpectedly into traffic or trip a runner or other walkers.
17. Be aware of sun glare! In late fall and early spring, during early morning hours, the sun is low on the horizon setting up a situation that on some roadways where drivers are facing east they are looking directly into the sun. Keep this in mind because during these brief periods of time, drivers:
-Can’t see more than a few yards in front of their car.
-Are so focused on the road that they don’t see anything else.
-Can’t anticipate pedestrians at the curbside ready to cross the road.
I recently had a situation where the sun glare combined with a wet roadway nearly blinded me from above (the sun) and below (the glare from the road). It was so bad that I couldn’t see the crossing guard in full neon green reflective gear until I was nearly driving past him. He was standing on the double yellow stripe in the middle of the road. I stopped and cautioned him about the sun glare and for him to be careful as motorists literally can’t see him.
18. Watch and listen for runners: Runners should also follow these rules which put them going in the same direction as you. Listen for footsteps behind you so you are not suddenly startled by a passing runner. This has happened to me a few times and just recently I was so startled by a woman runner coming up quickly behind me that my natural reaction was to lift my arms up in a defensive position which nearly caused me to elbow a woman runner as she passed! That would have been really bad. She could have avoided this situation by calling out that she was “passing on the right,” and I should have paid more attention to my surroundings.
19. Watch and listen for bicyclists: Remember that bikes should be riding in the same direction as cars. So, they will be coming at you but, quietly. Pay particular attention while crossing streets as, once again, bikes will be coming at you from the same directions as cars. Think: left, right, left when crossing.
20. Know Your Walking Limits: Over-exertion, heat illnesses, frostbite, dehydration, and other serious health issues could happen while overdoing
21. Program 911 into your cellphone: Also, let someone know your plans. Where you are walking, what time you should return, and make it a habit to contact that person upon your return.
22. Weather Considerations for Walking
Walking can be done in just about any weather conditions as long as you are prepared and properly dressed. There is a certain kind of satisfaction when I’ve completed a walk in less than ideal weather conditions. But you must take precautions.
Walking in Hot Weather
Know the heat index which is a result of the combined effects of the temperature and humidity of the air. You must carry water with you and know your limitions.
Walking in Cold Weather
Wind and cold together make up wind chill. Know the air temperature and wind chill index before going out to walk.
The key is to dress as if it is 10 degrees warmer than the wind chill temperature.
32-degree weather with a 10 mile per hour wind speed will make it feel like 23 degrees. Dress appropriately to feel comfortable and to avoid frostbite and hypothermia.
Beware of wind chill temperatures
You must take the 9-degree difference between the air temperature reading and the wind chill temperature into account when dressing for the cold.
Walking in the Wind
You must know the wind chill factor before heading out into the elements. Wear a windbreaker and a hat so that the warmth you generate by walking doesn’t get blown away through your clothing. Beware of flying debris. If tree limbs are fall all around you…get indoors ASAP
Learn and apply these 22 Walking Safety Tip on your next walk. One of them may save your life!
Walk on,
Frank S. Ring
Author: Walking for Health and Fitness, Fitness Walking and Bodyweight Exercises, Walking Inspiration, and Walking Logbook Journal.
