United States Department of Transportation United States Department of Transportation

Pedestrian Safety

At some point in the day, everyone is a pedestrian, which is why pedestrian safety is an essential part of every highway safety communications plan. Below you’ll find messaging on how drivers can keep pedestrians safe and how pedestrians can stay safe.

Some assets are available in English and Spanish. Share this information with partner organizations to help spread the message across communities. 

A reminder – October is Pedestrian Safety Month, a good opportunity to increase safety messaging across all platforms.   

Facts

Pedestrian facts, stats and reports from NHTSA's National Center for Statistics and Analysis

 Get More Facts & Reports
  • In 2023, there were 7,314 pedestrians killed in traffic crashes in the United States. That is 20 pedestrians a day and 140 pedestrians a week. This represents a 3.7% decrease from the 7,593 pedestrian fatalities in 2022.
  • On average, a pedestrian was killed every 72 minutes and injured every 7 minutes in traffic crashes in 2023.
  • Pedestrian deaths accounted for 18% of all traffic fatalities in 2023 and 3% of all people injured in traffic crashes in 2023.
  • In 2023, an estimated 68,244 pedestrians were injured, a 1.3% increase from the 67,341 pedestrians injured in 2022.
  • Seventy-four percent of the pedestrian fatalities occurred at locations that were not intersections, 17% occurred at intersections, and the remaining 9% occurred at other locations in 2023.
  • More pedestrian fatalities occurred in the dark (77%) than in daylight (19%), dusk (2%), and dawn (2%) in 2023.
  • Alcohol use is a significant factor in fatal crashes. In 2023, 46% of all crashes resulting in pedestrian fatalities involved either a driver and/or pedestrian with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of .01 or higher.
  • Seventeen percent of the children 14 and younger killed in traffic crashes in 2023 were pedestrians.
  • Research shows that the average risk of death for a pedestrian reaches 10% at an impact speed of 23 mph, 25% at 32 mph, 50% at 42 mph, 75% at 50 mph and 90% at 58 mph.
  • Seventy percent of the pedestrians killed in traffic crashes in 2023 were males.
  • More pedestrian fatalities occurred in urban areas (84%) than rural areas (16%) in 2023.
  • Nearly 1 out of every 4 pedestrians killed in traffic crashes in 2023 (24%) were struck by hit-and-run drivers. 

    For facts translated in Spanish, visit NHTSA.gov/Espanol.

Social Media

This social media playbook contains sample social media content in English and Spanish. Download this guide for instructions on posting the below playbook graphics to Facebook, X and Instagram. The content is designed for easy posting and seamless integration into your current social media strategy.

Graphics

Asset Type

Graphics | English
Dads | Static | English 1200x1200 | Facebook, X, Instagram
Families | Static | English 1200x1200 | Facebook, X, Instagram
Friends | Static | English 1200x1200 | Facebook, X, Instagram
Grandmas | Static | English 1200x1200 | Facebook, X, Instagram
Infographics | English
Fatalities Injuries | English 1200x600
Pedestrian Children | English 1200x1200 | Facebook, X, Instagram
Pedestrian Darkness | English 1200x1200 | Facebook, X, Instagram
Pedestrian Impaired | English 1200x1200 | Facebook, X, Instagram
Pedestrian Non-Intersection | English 1200x1200 | Facebook, X, Instagram
Pedestrian Speed Sign | English 1200x1200 | Facebook, X, Instagram
Pedestrian Speed | English 1200x1200 | Facebook, X, Instagram
Graphics | Spanish
Dads | Static | Spanish 1200x1200 | Facebook, X, Instagram
Families | Static | Spanish 1200x1200 | Facebook, X, Instagram
Friends | Static | Spanish 1200x1200 | Facebook, X, Instagram
Grandmas | Static | Spanish 1200x1200 | Facebook, X, Instagram

Image Library

Pedestrian Image Library

Videos

Driving Around Pedestrians Multilingual
Pedestrian Bystander Multilingual
Walking Safely Multilingual

Pedestrian Safety Month

During October, USDOT and NHTSA celebrate National Pedestrian Safety Month. You can use any of the materials available on this page to increase your pedestrian safety messaging.

Also, sample news releases can be downloaded and used during National Pedestrian Safety Month.

  • Coming Soon

Additional Resources