Distracted Pedestrians at Higher Risk of Injury

Since the rise of the cell phone, distracted driving has been a huge area of concern. Attention is now turning to distracted pedestrians.

Pedestrian fatalities in the U.S. have increased for the first time in four years, focusing attention on the problems of pedestrians distracted by technology, including cell phones and iPods.

A recently published study in the online journal Injury Prevention found that pedestrians are at a higher risk of injury. Researchers found that the injury or death rate of pedestrians wearing headphones who are hit by moving vehicles has tripled in the United States since 2004 and 2005.

Just like drivers who can be distracted, pedestrians wearing headphones can be distracted and are at risk of getting hit by a car, truck, motorcyclist, bus, bicyclist or train.

Combing through data from 2004 through 2011, researchers identified 116 cases in which a pedestrian who was wearing headphones was killed or injured by a moving vehicle. 68% of the victims were male, and 67% were younger than 30. According to the study's lead author, Dr. Richard Lichenstein, the ages of the pedestrians killed mimic the demographic of users of MP3 players and iPods.

A phone app has even been developed to aid distracted pedestrians. Researchers at Dartmouth and the University of Bologna have developed a phone app for use by pedestrians who are talking on their cell phone. The Android app alerts the pedestrian if the system determines that an approaching vehicle is a threat to the pedestrian. Using a smartphone's camera, the app can detect cars moving 30 mph at more than 160 feet away. It alerts the distracted pedestrian via vibrations and auditory alerts.

Many state lawmakers are pushing legislation involving iPods and cell phones and how they affect traffic safety. In New York, a pending bill would ban the use of cell phones, iPods or other electronic devices while crossing streets. In Oregon, pending legislation would restrict bicyclists from using cell phone and music players. In Virginia, pending legislation would ban bicyclists from using a hand-held communication device.

California State Senator Joe Simitian is concerned that efforts to legislate against distraction outside the car could diminish the seriousness of laws designed to curb distracted driving. He believes there is a problem with distracted pedestrians, but the distracted driver poses a much greater hazard to the public, whereas distracted pedestrian poses a risk mainly to him or herself.