Alabamians need to be extra careful before crossing the street.
According to business site 24/7 Wall Street, Alabama is the 8th most dangerous state for pedestrians. In 2014, Alabama had 1.98 pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents. The state also has the 13th highest number of traffic fatalities in the country, 820.
New Mexico is ranked the worst state in the country for pedestrians, where 3.55 pedestrians were killed for every 100,000 residents. The safest state is Minnesota, which only had 0.27 pedestrians killed per 100,000.
The ten worst states for pedestrians are New Jersey, Alaska, Alabama, Arizona, South Carolina, Louisiana, Nevada, Delaware, Florida and New Mexico.
Meanwhile, the ten safest states are Minnesota, Nebraska, Iowa, Maine, Ohio, Wisconsin, Kansas, Idaho, Vermont, and Wyoming.
24/7 Wall Street used data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the U.S. Census Bureau to create their list. They reported that traffic and pedestrian fatalities have decreased by 30% in the last ten years, but the numbers are still high in many states. In 2014, 32,675 people died from traffic-related incidents, with 15% of those fatalities being pedestrians.
Of course some states have decreased the number of pedestrian fatalities more than others. Even though Rhode Island has decreased its pedestrian fatalities by 100% since 2004, it is still the 20th worst state for pedestrians. Meanwhile, Minnesota, the safest state, has only decreased its fatality rate by 63% since 2004. Pedestrian deaths are much more likely to occur in urban areas, with 76% of pedestrians killed in cities in 2014.
Don’t miss out! Subscribe today to have Alabama’s leading headlines delivered to your inbox.