This increase has committee members concerned as they met to discuss action during the monthly Macon-Bibb Pedestrian Fatality Review Board. One member, who directed Governor Purdue’s Governor’s Office of Highway Safety said that this information demonstrates that many more people are walking.
He believes the blame must be taken off of the victim and focus should be put on road improvement, primarily through better engineering. Proper education regarding road rules and enforcement of laws and medical capabilities of emergency services should also be included. These have been successful aims for the rest of the nation, but the board member suggested that additional reductions may be seen by determining problem spots and risk factors and distributing resources accordingly.
To this effect, the 950 accidents that took place between 2003 and 2015 have been mapped, and hot spots are shown to be Shurling Drive, Pio Nono Avenue, Anthony Drive and Martin Luther King Boulevard.
If these new strategies to prevent senseless deaths are too late for you, if you have already lost a loved one in a pedestrian accident, you may be looking for answers. The blame should not lie with the victim, and the hardship should not weigh on the family. Unfortunately, families are all too often burdened with financial obligations like medical expenses, funeral costs, an unexpected loss of income and are not given the proper chance to focus on the memory of their loved one and the chance to appropriately grieve. If you find yourself in such a position, you may benefit from meeting with a Macon wrongful death attorney who could assess the situation and event surrounding your loved one’s death and pursue compensation for you from anyone else at fault.
Source: The Telegraph, “Georgia pedestrian deaths spike; Macon-Bibb review board plans strategy,” Liz Fabian, March 15, 2016
