Emphasis Area 5: Pedestrians
All Delawareans are pedestrians for a portion of their daily travel. For some Delawareans, walking is their primary mode of transportation. Pedestrian fatalities accounted for 25 percent of all fatalities and 9 percent of all serious injuries from 2015 through 2019. Compared to 2007 through 2014 data used to develop the 2016-2020 SHSP, pedestrian fatalities have increased by 15 percent; however, there has been a 48 percent decrease in seriously injured pedestrians.
Improvements have been made to pedestrian infrastructure; however, addressing pedestrian-involved crashes remains a challenge. Fifty-six percent of pedestrian fatalities and serious injuries occur on divided highways, which are typically high-speed, multi-lane suburban corridors that are surrounded by commercial and residential land uses and significant transit usage which combine to create a potentially unsafe environment for pedestrian crossings. Aside from engineering countermeasures, educating pedestrians on safe crossing practices and reminding drivers to anticipate pedestrians crossing roadways is also critical to reducing pedestrian related crashes.
Read more about pedestrians in the SHSP
Pedestrian Fatalities and Serious Injuries (5-Year Rolling Averages)
Implementation Highlights
- Pedestrian Safety Audits
- HAWK Signals
- Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons
- Traffic Signal Program
- Pedestrian Education Programs
- Road Diet/Roadway Reconfiguration
Presentations
- Pedestrian Safety In Delaware - African American Task Force, September 2021
- Pedestrian Safety Countermeasures Along Delaware's SR 1 Beach Corridor, October 2021
