Pedestrian Safety - It's Up To All of Us

Parents – Keeping Your Children Safe On The Street

The streets in our neighborhoods should be safe places for children to walk. But many kids face traffic dangers just because they're walking to school or to the park.

Whether walking to a friend's house, to school or around town, children need to know how to navigate streets safely. Pedestrian injury remains the second leading cause of unintentional injury-related death among children ages 5 to 14.

The maturity level of a child under 10 years of age makes him or her less able to correctly gauge road dangers and renders him or her at greater risk for injury and death. Drivers, parents and kids can all do their part to help keep our streets safe for child pedestrians.

When, Where and How Injuries Happen

• Other than in the street, driveways, parking lots and sidewalks are the locations where young children under 3 years of age suffer the highest number of injuries as pedestrians.
• Almost 50 percent of nonfatal back-over injuries among children ages 1 to 14 occur at home.
• Seventy-four percent of child pedestrian deaths occur at non-intersection locations.
• Forty-two percent of child pedestrian deaths occur between 4 p.m. and 7:59 p.m.
• Children in low-income, densely populated, urban residential areas are at a substantially higher risk of pedestrian-related injury.
• From 1969 to current, the percentage of children walking to school dropped from approximately 50 percent to 13 percent. Part of the decline in pedestrian injuries could be a result of the drastic reduction in children walking to school.

Who Is Affected

• In 2009, almost two-thirds of childhood pedestrian-related deaths occurred to males.
• Children in lower-income neighborhoods were 3.5 to 5.7 times more likely to be injured as pedestrians than children in other neighborhoods.
• Four out of five driveway-related incidents occur to children ages 4 and under.
• Parents of children who suffer from a pedestrian-related injury are three times less likely to practice other preventive behaviors and are more likely to be single parents, young mothers or both.

Behavior Modeling

Parents are the most important models of proper pedestrian behavior for children.

• Cross streets safely. Cross at a corner, using traffic signals and crosswalks. Try to make eye contact with drivers before crossing in front of them. Do not assume that because you can see the driver, the driver can see you.
• Look left, right and left again when crossing, and keep looking as you cross. Walk, do not run, across the street.
• Walk on sidewalks or paths. If there are no sidewalks, walk facing traffic as far to the left as possible.
• Be a safe pedestrian around cars. Watch for cars that are turning or backing up.
• Parents and kids should hold hands in parking lots.

Set Pedestrian Safety Rules for Your Children

• Never allow children under age 10 to cross streets alone. Adult supervision is essential until you are sure a child has good traffic skills and judgment.
• Children should walk on direct routes with the fewest street crossings.
• Make sure children know to cross 10 feet in front of a school bus, never behind, and to wait for adults on the same side of the street as the school bus loading or unloading zone.
• Teach your child never to run out into a street for a ball, a pet or any other reason.

Help Create an Environment That's Safe for Pedestrians

• Make sure your child plays in safe places away from motor vehicles, such as yards, parks and playgrounds and never in the street. Fence off play areas from driveways and streets.
• Buy clothing and accessories incorporating reflective materials for your family to wear at dawn and dusk, in the evening and during other low-light situations, such as rainy or foggy weather.
• Check frequently for children when backing out of a driveway or a parking space.