As drivers, we aren't always aware of pedestrians, because our vision is blocked, we are distracted, or we just didn't anticipate or look for pedestrians in our path.

As pedestrians, sometimes we forget to look both ways when crossing the street, we ignore traffic signals at intersections, and sometimes our lives are so hectic that we do not pay attention to the traffic moving around us.

The Pedestrian Safety Campaign Planner and Step-by-Step Guide are designed to help communities conduct their own multi-media public education and information campaign. A list of campaign materials is provided on page 9 and a matrix identifying the types of campaign materials is provided on page 100.

Facts

National Statistics*

• On average, 5,000 pedestrians are killed each year.
• 85,000 pedestrians are injured every year.
• A pedestrian is killed or injured about every 7 minutes.
• In a typical 8-hour workday, 4-5 pedestrians are killed.
• Every day 13-14 pedestrians are killed.
• A "jet-load" (190) of pedestrians are killed every two weeks.
• Every day, about 232 pedestrians are injured.
• Pedestrian injuries and fatalities result in at least $20 billion in societal costs.

Who dies as a pedestrian?*

• 60 percent are working adults.
• 23 percent are elderly persons aged 65 or older.
• 17 percent are children up to the age of 20.

What role does visibility play?*

• Approximately 50 percent of pedestrian fatalities occur between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and midnight (a six hour window).

* Statistics provided by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Fatality Analysis Reporting System.