Yahoo Autos Deadliest cities in America for pedestrians
Crossing the street in some cities is way deadlier than it should be. Smart Growth America’s "Dangerous By Design" 2024 study showed that pedestrians in Memphis, Tenn., were the most likely to die, but Florida had the highest number of cities in the top 20 most dangerous metro areas.
An average of 5.14 people per 100,000 residents died in Memphis between 2018 and 2022, followed closely by Albuquerque, N.M., with 4.38 deaths per 100,000 residents.
Ten deadliest metro areas for pedestrians:
Memphis, TN: 5.14 per 100,000 residents
Albuquerque, NM: 4.83
Tucson, AZ: 4.16
Bakersfield, CA: 3.99
Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond, FL: 3.96
Baton Rouge, LA: 3.96
Fresno, CA: 3.89
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL: 3.75
Charleston-North Charleston, SC: 3.66
Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR: 3.63
Smart Growth noted that large metro areas are becoming significantly more dangerous for pedestrians. In 2009, there were only eight areas with more than two pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents, but the number more than doubled to 18 in the 2014 report. Interestingly, 2009’s most dangerous area was Orlando, with 2.86 deaths, but that number wouldn’t even reach the top 20 in the 2024 report.
