How accidents between vehicles and pedestrians happen, and why

Texas has an earned reputation as a growth state, both economically and in terms of its population. One side effect of a growing population, though, is that population density and the incidence of vehicle-pedestrian accidents rise in direct relation to one another.

Four states in the country account for about 40 percent of accidents involving pedestrians and a motor vehicle, and Texas is one of those states. Understanding how these accidents happen, and why, is important for anyone crossing a street; it can make the difference between crossing safely and becoming a statistic.

Fortunately, there have been multiple government studies on the subject of how pedestrian injuries happen and how they can be prevented. Their findings have been largely consistent. Some of the ways that vehicles end up striking pedestrians include:

• Alcohol consumption, by the driver, the pedestrian or both. In fact, statistics suggest that in four of every 10 pedestrian accidents, the pedestrian had consumed alcohol.
• Distractions. Cellphone and smartphone usage is on the rise, and with that increase comes opportunity for drivers and pedestrians alike to not be paying attention to their surroundings.
• Poor visibility. Most pedestrian accidents happen at night. Many others occur in poor weather conditions.
• Population density, and lifestyle choices. As mentioned above, the higher the population, the more vehicle-pedestrian accidents there are. Also, Texas is one state where the emphasis on personal fitness has manifested itself in more people outside walking and jogging which, when coupled with population density, creates more opportunities for accidents.

The government studies have been careful not to assign the lion’s share of fault to either drivers or pedestrians when it comes to apportioning blame for pedestrian accidents.

For example, walking across the street while looking down at your smartphone and listening to music on a headset can be just as dangerous as driving while sending or reading a text, and being a drunk pedestrian is a contribution to these accidents in a similar way that being a drunk driver is.