Look Both Ways: Report Highlights Pedestrian Dangers in FL Cities
Posted May 21, 2014 08:59 am | Public News Service
ORLANDO, FL - Four Florida metro areas - Orlando, Tampa, Jacksonville and Miami - top a nationwide list of metropolitan areas deemed most dangerous to pedestrians.
The report - Dangerous By Design - released today by
Smart Growth America - highlights the number of people
killed annually while walking or bicycling on roadways.
Laura Cantwell, associate state director of advocacy for
AARP Florida, says older Americans, people living with
disabilities and children are disproportionately
impacted by unsafe roadways.
"Older adults often face more risks as pedestrians
because they are less able to react quickly to oncoming
vehicles, and if they are struck they're less likely to
recover from the collision," she points out.
When compared with other states, Florida ranks number
one in pedestrian fatalities with almost 5,200 deaths
from 2003 to 2012.
The report recommends increasing pedestrian-safe walking
areas, ramps on curbs to accommodate wheelchairs and
strollers, and bike lanes.
Additionally, it recommends the passage of the Safe
Street Act, currently before Congress, that would
require federally funded roads to accommodate bicyclists
and pedestrians, in addition to cars.
The report notes that since the study concluded in 2012,
several Florida metropolitan areas have made great
strides in improving pedestrian safety.
Jacksonville hired a full-time bicycle and pedestrian
safety coordinator and the Best Foot Forward Coalition
in central Florida has a goal of reducing pedestrian
fatalities and injuries by 50 percent in the next five
years.
Still with that, Cantwell says the state has a long way
to go.
"There's a lot of places in Florida that don't even have
sidewalks in a lot of the cities, and making sure that
if you do have sidewalks that there are enough
crosswalks so that people are able to cross over the
road safer and more comfortable," she says.
Nationwide, 47,000 pedestrians were killed from 2003 to
2012, which, according to the report, is six times as
many who died during the same time period in natural
disasters.
Photos/graphics, layout added by the Observer
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