Right of Way: Race, Class, and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America

Excellent book. Eye opening.

Essential reading for understanding the crisis of traffic violence in the USA -- one that's actually gotten worse since this book was published. With cars getting bigger and drivers getting more reckless, it's hard to see this trend reversing soon.This short book is concise, readable, and well-documented, punctuated by sometimes gut-wrenching case studies in how, where, and why pedestrians are killed by cars. I first heard the author speak on the podcast "The War on Cars," and I haven't looked at American roads and automobile infrastructure the same way since.If you want to understand why over 40,000 people died in traffic collisions in 2021 in the US, this is a good place to start. And ultimately, the book's message is optimistic: WE DON'T HAVE TO LIVE LIKE THIS. Safer, sustainable city streets are possible, and almost all deaths from traffic violence are preventable.

A well written argument that the continued high level of deaths of pedestrians from automobiles is a policy choice, one that has its greatest impact on those who have the least power.

I sent this book to an attorney that I work with. His comments were, "now that I have seen what Angie so clearly lays out, I can't unsee this!"The author does a fantastic job of weaving various elements together that tell the story of the challenges that we have in our communities.

Should be required reading for transportation engineers who “claim” to care about transportation safety. Angie has captured the full essence of safety for our most vulnerable populations being not only ignored but exacerbated by our current system of transportation design and priorities for funding.

This book is comprehensive and descriptive, as it should be. I really enjoyed this book and Ms. Schmitt is a fabulous author who has spent her career advocating for pedestrian public safety. A must-read for any urban planner, transportation professional, or traffic engineer.

Every American - and especially every parent - should read this book about how unsafe design makes our roads more deadly for everyone, from drivers to pedestrians.

Over the past decade, the number of U.S.pedestrians killed by automobiles has increased by 50 percent; by contrast, in Europe pedestrian death rates have actually gone down by 36 percent. What went wrong?This book outlines the causes of the problem, including:*Demographic change. Large Sun Belt cities like Phoenix and Tampa are the most dangerous for pedestrians, because they have the most wide, speeding-friendly roads. (Where traffic is fast, a collision is more likely to be fatal than in a place where cars only go 20 miles per hour or so). As these regions have grown, more people have moved to those regions, causing more auto/pedestrian collisions.*The growth of “killer cars.” Sport utility vehicles cause more than twice as many deaths per collision as sedans, because drivers of tall vehicles have more difficulty seeing pedestrians, and because a SUV is likely to hit a pedestrian in the middle of the body instead of the legs. “Bull bars” added to SUVs increase risks to pedestrians by concentrating the force of a blow; they are banned in the United Kingdom but not in the U.S.*An aging society. A middle-aged man can walk 3.5 feet per second, while older people walk 2.5-3 feet per second. Traffic engineers time lights for a walking speed of 3.5 or more feet per second, ensuring that older walkers are stranded in the middle of the road when lights change.One common response to dead pedestrians is to blame the victim. For example, one study showed that only 25 percent of pedestrians seriously injured by cars were at crosswalks- implying that the rest were struck in midblock where people arguably should not be crossing streets. However, Schmitt looked at the study more carefully, and points out that only 25 percent of seriously injured walkers were crossed at midblock. (The rest were injured in situations that do not fit either category, such as pedestrians struck in parking lots, or attacked by cars traveling in reverse). Moreover, crosswalks are infrequent in the suburban areas where injuries are most common, making it difficult for pedestrians NOT to cross midblock.She also discusses solutions, like:*Road redesign. In New York City, Queens Boulevard was narrowed by the addition of bike lanes, reducing the number of lanes walkers have to cross at a time. Between 1990 and 2014, 189 walkers died on this “boulevard of death” while in some recent years, none have.*Street lighting. After Detroit repaired thousands of nonfunctioning streetlights, the pedestrian death rate fell 50 percent in two years- at a time when deaths were rising in the rest of Michigan.*Imposing rules to make SUVs safer. For example, European nations score cars on impacts to pedestrians, encouraging carmakers to introduce safety features to raise their scores.*More crosswalks and sidewalks.*Changing traffic lights to give walkers a 5-7 second head start before vehicles get a green light.*Lower speed limits, enforced by speed cameras. When New York City approved a pilot speed cameras program for school zones, injury crashes were reduced by 17 percent.