Stop sign violations put child pedestrians at risk : a national survey of motorist behavior at stop signs in school zones and residential areas.

Walking is a no-cost transportation option that allows parents and children to spend time together, get exercise and improve air quality by not creating vehicle pollutants. Unfortunately, recent evidence indicates that kids are walking less. In 1969, nearly half of elementary school students walked or biked to school. By 1995, only 10 percent of children traveled by foot to school. This decline can be attributed to many causes, including traffic danger and other hazards that make walking unsafe for children. Decreased walking has contributed to a significant decline in child pedestrian deaths and injuries. However, pedestrian injury remains a leading cause of unintentional injury-related death among children. In 2000, 706 children ages 14 and under died, an estimated 47,300 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for pedestrian-related injuries in 2001. Nearly 76 percent of these deaths and 73 percent of injuries were motor vehicle-related. The total annual cost of traffic-related pedestrian death and injury among children ages 14 and under is more than $7.2 billion. Speeding and other driver behaviors are a contributing factor to pedestrian-related injuries. In 1999, a National SAFE KIDS Campaign survey found that two-thirds of drivers exceeded the posted speed limit in school zones during the 30-minute periods before and after school. Each year, stop sign violations are associated with approximately 200 fatal crashes and 17,000 non-fatal injury crashes. Children are at risk of injury when stop sign and pedestrian right-of-way laws are violated, yet studies investigating the rate of compliance with stop signs at intersections where children could be present have been lacking. Now SAFE KIDS and FedEx Express have closely examined driver behaviors at intersections in school zones and residential neighborhoods. This observational study determined the frequency of driver compliance with stop signs at unsignalized, marked and unmarked pedestrian crosswalks near schools and in residential areas. (Author/publisher)