As pedestrian fatalities rise nationwide -- 45 percent over the past decade -- Memphis stands out as a top offender. In a new report by the nonprofit Smart Growth America, the Memphis metro area is ranked as the third most dangerous city to be on foot.
Pedestrians struck and killed by drivers last year in Memphis increased by more than 55 percent over 2019 for a record of 64 fatalities in 2020, says Nicholas Oyler, the bikeway and pedestrian program manager for the city.
He says the low ranking is unfortunately not surprising but indicates a systemic problem with the way people get around the city.
“If we want a city where you can pretty much get anywhere within 20 minutes from one point to another—which, I think that’s pretty much Memphis—we have to understand there’s a downside to that,” Oyler says.
He says most street layouts are designed with motorists in mind. Wide lanes, for example, invite faster driving.
“Speed and safety are mutually exclusive,”he says. “You can’t have a street that really prioritizes both. You have to make a choice.”
Pedestrian safety advocates propose other improvements to roadways, such as better buffers between sidewalks and traffic, and eliminating so-called slip lanes that allow drivers to turn right without stopping at an intersection. Oyler also wants more frequent crosswalks; in some areas of the city, they can be over a quarter-mile apart.
“If you’re carrying something from the grocery store, if you have a small child in tow, having to walk a quarter-mile, a half-mile, out of the way just to go to a crosswalk isn’t a reasonable thing to ask of people,” he says.
And communities of color and residents living in low-income neighborhoods are especially vulnerable to pedestrian crashes. According to the Smart Growth Report, fatalities for those walking in low-income neighborhoods are almost three times higher than in wealthier neighborhoods.
Oyler says this is in part because people often walk or take the bus as a mode of transport in these areas.
“If you think about the busiest bus routes in our city, they tend to be along streets that are very hostile towards walking: Poplar Ave., Lamar Ave., Bellevue [Blvd.], Elvis Presley [Blvd.],” he says.
Disinvested areas, the report says, are also more likely to lack infrastructure, such as well-maintained sidewalks or marked crosswalks to keep pedestrians out of harm’s way.
Making safer streets for walking comes with no small price tag.
Federal lawmakers are currently considering aproposal requiring states to earmark five percent of their federal highway funding for projects that better serve pedestrians, bicyclists and public transit. Memphis Representative Steve Cohen is a co-sponsor of the legislation.
In addition to increased federal and state investment, Oyler would also like to see the city offer a consistent pot of money for street redesign efforts.
“It’s a problem that we know how to solve,” he says. “The cure is designing and building safe streets that equitably accommodate everyone who uses them and following basic traffic laws. If we can do those things, we can end these deaths.”
