Federal lawmakers have introduced legislation aimed at reducing the number of pedestrians who are killed and seriously injured in crashes with supersized passenger vehicles.
Recent government data show that there are more than 40,000 fatal car crashes per year in the United States. Between 2013 and 2022, pedestrian fatalities increased 57 percent from 4,779 to 7,522, according to the National Highway Transportation Safety Agency (NHTSA). In 2022, 88 percent of pedestrian fatalities occurred in single-vehicle crashes, with trucks, SUVs, crossovers and vans responsible for nearly half of all fatalities. While speeding, distracted driving and roadways that are dangerous by design have all been cited by transportation safety experts as factors that have contributed to the rise in pedestrian deaths, experts also point to a deadly mismatch of pedestrian vs. supersized vehicle.
Supersized passenger vehicles have taken over U.S. roadways. In 2009, SUVs and pickups made up 38 percent of vehicles on the road. Today, they make up three-quarters of all vehicles. Over the past three decades, the average U.S. passenger vehicle has gotten about 4 inches wider, 10 inches longer, 8 inches taller and 1,000 pounds heavier, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). These supersized vehicles hit pedestrians with a heavier force and higher on the body compared with smaller vehicles. Children are particularly vulnerable, as they are more likely than an adult to be struck in the head, which increases the likelihood that an accident will be fatal. A study published in 2022 found that children are eight times more likely to die when struck by an SUV compared with children struck by a passenger car.
In the mismatch of pedestrian vs. supersized vehicle, design matters. Researchers at the IIHS found that passenger vehicles with front ends more than 40 inches off the ground and vehicles with blunt front ends between 30- and 40-inches high were more likely to kill pedestrians than vehicles with shorter hood heights and more sloping front-end profiles.
IIHS research also has shown that supersized vehicles have reduced driver visibility, leading to more pedestrian crashes. A-pillars are the structures that support a vehicle’s roof at either side of the front windshield. They help protect occupants from roof collapse in rollover crashes. But as A-pillars are built heavier and wider to accommodate supersized vehicles, they can create blind spots that can make it difficult for drivers to see pedestrians, according to the IIHS.
Other design elements that can impede drivers’ ability to see pedestrians include high ride heights and long front ends, according to IIHS. A study released by the IIHS in 2022 found that SUVs, pickups, vans and minivans are substantially more likely to hit pedestrians while making turns, as compared with cars. With respect to front blind spots, anecdotally, in 2019, investigative journalists had children sit in a line in front of a Chevy Tahoe and a Cadillac Escalade until their respective drivers could see them. It took nine children before the owner of the Chevy Tahoe could see the top of a child’s head, and 13 children for the owner of the Cadillac Escalade. The blind zone for the Cadillac Escalade stretched 15 feet in front of the vehicle.
How Would Federal Legislation Keep Pedestrians Safe?
The Pedestrian Protection Act, introduced in August 2024 by Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa) and co-sponsored by Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), would require NHTSA to:
- Develop vehicle safety standards to protect pedestrians, bicyclists and vulnerable road users, including standards for dangerous features like vehicle height and hood and bumper design.
- Implement a minimum visibility standard for motor vehicles to reduce blind zones associated with pedestrian crashes.
- Provide consumers with more information about vehicle safety by updating NHTSA’s New Car Assessment Program to include a driver visibility rating.
Less than a month after the bill was introduced, NHTSA, which has often been criticized by safety advocates for focusing solely on the safety of vehicle occupants and not pedestrians, proposed a new safety standard that would establish test procedures that simulate head-to-hood impact in a pedestrian crash as well as performance requirements that minimize the risk of head injury. NHTSA estimates that the new standard would save 67 lives a year.
Who May Be Held Legally Liable in a Pedestrian Crash?
When pedestrian crashes result in death or catastrophic injuries, there are a number of parties with potential legal liability, according to Feldman Shepherd motor vehicle accident and truck accident attorneys John M. Dodig and Jason A. Daria. Parties who could potentially bear legal liability in pedestrian crashes include:
- The driver/owner of the striking vehicle.
- If the driver was drinking, the establishment that served the driver alcohol.
- In cases where a roadway defect caused or contributed to the accident, those responsible for the design, construction, maintenance or repairs of the roadway or adjacent structures.
- Any company involved in the design and manufacture of a vehicle with a design defect that caused or contributed to the accident.
What Should I Do If I or a Loved One Has Been Injured in a Pedestrian Crash?
Dodig and Daria recommend contacting a motor vehicle accident attorney as soon as possible in all cases where a pedestrian accident results in serious injury or death so that a full investigation can be promptly commenced.
“In motor vehicle accident cases, there is a limited window of opportunity to gather and assess evidence at the accident site, to preserve any involved vehicle as evidence, and to talk to witnesses before memories fade. The success of these cases often hinges on immediate and thorough investigation and preparation,” Dodig said.
“Pedestrians, like motor vehicle occupants, have an absolute right to expect that vehicles will be designed with their safety in mind. These supersized vehicles pose a grave threat, and we are committed to thoroughly and diligently pursuing every available legal remedy for pedestrians who are injured,” Daria said.