If you travel around on foot, whether through choice or necessity, then it’s worth paying attention to how injury risk changes throughout the week. While you might not always be able to change the time of your journey, you at least know when to be even more cautious than usual.
The National Safety Council is in charge of producing figures on such events. Here is what they reported for 2021:
Over 7,000 pedestrians were killed on the nation’s public roads. Another 1,500 died when hit by vehicles on private property such as parking lots and driveways.
Urban roads accounted for around 85% of the fatalities, but it’s important to remember that far more people live in urban areas than rural ones.
Days of the week
A driver could take your life on any day of the week, but they are more likely to do so on a Friday or Saturday night. This is probably due to more people going out drinking on these nights, many of whom will then drive home. Obviously getting drunk as a pedestrian could also affect your ability to get home safely.
Darkness increases your risk
Whatever Simon and Garfunkel thought, darkness is definitely not your friend if you are on foot – walking is far more dangerous after dark. Interestingly, the figures show more pedestrians were killed on lit roads at night than on unlit roads. That doesn’t mean you should seek out unlit roads though. The figures are probably down to more pedestrians choosing to walk on lit roads in the first place.
Steps such as wearing bright or reflective clothing, or carrying a torch can help make you more visible. However, many of these fatalities likely occurred due to drivers not taking enough care to look out for pedestrians. When that is the case, understanding how to hold the driver responsible will be crucial.