Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Around the Block

Cell Phones Don’t Make Walking Dangerous — Car-Based Cities Do

Highway signs downtown bode poorly for pedestrian safety. Photo: SPUI/Wikimedia Commons

All the hype about cell phone use being to blame for pedestrian deaths doesn't hold up when you review the data. To get a sense of the real sources of risk for people on foot, it helps to look at where fatal crashes happen, because fatality rates have a very strong geographic component. That's true both within cities -- where fatalities tend to be concentrated on a relative small share of streets -- and from city to city.

A new study from researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee finds huge disparities in the risk of walking and biking between different American cities. The likelihood of being killed is about five times higher in the most dangerous regions than in the safest ones.

Several Florida cities, as usual, are among the most dangerous for walking, while cities with stronger transit systems and walkable street grids tend to be the safest.

pedestrian fatalities

To assess the relative safety in these cities, authors Robert Schneider, Aida Sanatizadeh, and Jason Vargo used federal travel survey responses and crash fatality data. By factoring in how much people walk and bike, they were able to compare safety per trip, not just per capita, though the authors caution that the bike safety data is less robust than the pedestrian data.

The results suggest public policies and physical characteristics separate the safer cities from the more dangerous ones, the authors told the UWM press shop:

“We compared our lists of the safest and most dangerous regions with the ‘Walk Friendly Community’ and ‘Bicycle Friendly Community’ rankings, which are based on the investments cities make in infrastructure and programs,” Schneider said. “The general connection between high rankings and low fatality rates is a good indication that those investments have paid off.”

Schneider also raises another possibility: “Communities that were developed in a more pedestrian- or bicycle-friendly pattern to begin with -- typically older urban areas -- may have chosen to continue to invest in walking and bicycling, meaning that the relationship may work in both directions.”

In either case, the findings suggest an important connection between walk-friendly and bicycle-friendly communities and safety, he said.

More recommended reading today: Transportation for America reports that a coalition of cities and active transportation advocates opposes automated vehicle legislation under consideration in the House of Representatives. And Plan Philly checks in on how the city's Play Streets program lets children stretch their legs even if they can't get to a park or playground.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Spooky Stuff: On Halloween, Some States Will Have Deadlier Roads Than Others

Find out how yours ranks — and what policymakers can do to make streets less scary.

October 30, 2025

Who Are Thursday’s Headlines For?

Non-drivers still perceive streets as being for cars even when they have bike lanes. And that's because, in many cases, they are.

October 30, 2025

An Olympian Task: Replicating Paris’s Bike Boom in Los Angeles

The Olympics can help transform the streets of Los Angeles  — if they look to the example of Paris.

October 29, 2025

Wednesday’s Headlines Are a Clear and Present Danger

Rescinding the "endangerment finding" could not only exacerbate climate change, it could also throw entire industries into chaos.

October 29, 2025

What’s More Regressive: Modest Driving Surcharges to Help Fund Transit, or Forced Car Ownership?

Do Illinois state senators and reps really want to make the financial burden on their constituents less "regressive"? If so they can start by ensuring that as many people as possible can live their lives without spending $12,000 annually just to leave their homes.

October 28, 2025

Tuesday’s Headlines Pay High Prices for Highway Repairs

If the U.S. didn't spend so much money on repaving roads, there might be more left over for other things, like transit.

October 28, 2025
See all posts