Submitted by bostonglobe t3_126mtmb in boston
From Globe.com:
Massachusetts had a 35 percent increase in pedestrian deaths in 2022, when 101 people were killed by vehicles, up from 75 people the prior year, according to a study released Thursday by WalkBoston, a statewide advocacy organization.
A majority of the pedestrians were killed in impoverished neighborhoods in some of the state’s largest cities, after dark, with senior citizens hit and killed at the highest rate, according to the report.
Of the state’s 351 cities and towns, 60 of them experienced fatal pedestrian crashes in 2022, compared with 47 in 2021, the report showed.
Boston surpassed all other cities in the state with 12 pedestrian deaths last year. Worcester had the second most pedestrian deaths with seven. Chicopee had the third most with five, the report showed.
“The sharp rise in fatal crashes is extremely troubling,” Brendan Kearney, deputy director of WalkBoston, said in a statement. “Unsafe road design is creating fatal consequences for communities across the Commonwealth. Designing our streets to reduce illegal speeding — targeting the most dangerous locations first for fixes — will save lives.”
WalkBoston calls on state transportation officials to release an action plan for safe streets, and for the Legislature to fund staff and resources in support of eliminating fatal crashes.
“Better road design is needed across the Commonwealth in municipalities of all sizes to slow traffic and make streets safer for people walking,” the report said.