Take Action: Bicyclist Safety MUST Be a Priority
B' Spokes: Why this is important for Maryland:
Source: FARS States | Pedestrians
And note that bike/ped fatales make up 22% of Maryland road fatalities.
Source: FARS States
And our ranking with bicycling and pedestrian fatality rates combined:
| State | Pedestrians Killed | Pedacyclists Killed | Population (Thousands) | "Pedestrian Fatality Rate per 100,000 Population" | "Pedacyclist Fatality Rate per 100,000 Population" | Total (Pedestrians + Pedacyclist) | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 490 | 125 | 19058 | 2.57 | 0.66 | 3.23 | 51 |
| South Carolina | 113 | 15 | 4679 | 2.41 | 0.32 | 2.73 | 50 |
| Arizona | 147 | 23 | 6483 | 2.27 | 0.35 | 2.62 | 49 |
| Louisiana | 88 | 18 | 4575 | 1.92 | 0.39 | 2.31 | 48 |
| New Mexico | 41 | 4 | 2082 | 1.97 | 0.19 | 2.16 | 47 |
| Delaware | 18 | 0 | 907 | 1.98 | 0 | 1.98 | 46 |
| California | 625 | 114 | 37692 | 1.66 | 0.3 | 1.96 | 45 |
| North Carolina | 160 | 25 | 9656 | 1.66 | 0.26 | 1.92 | 44 |
| Nevada | 46 | 4 | 2723 | 1.69 | 0.15 | 1.84 | 43 |
| Maryland | 102 | 5 | 5828 | 1.75 | 0.09 | 1.84 | 42 |
Even the U.S. Transportation Secretary says he won't tolerate 'crisis' in bicyclist deaths
Additional info about your representatives from LAB:
In the House (Chris Van Hollen did a lot better than the others.)
In the Senate (With Ben Cardin standing out a bit better.)
From League of American Wheelmen, Inc.
Once again, bicyclists have been left out.
This morning, the federal government released a traffic safety proposal that turns a blind eye to the rising number of bicyclist and pedestrians deaths.
Last week, 700 participants at the National Bike Summit visited their members of Congress and asked them to sign on to a critical bill that would require the U.S. Department of Transportation establish a specific target to improve the safety of bicyclists and pedestrians. Months ago, we mobilized bicyclists behind this bill because we knew DOT was unlikely to do this on their own.
Today, unfortunately, we were proven right.
The DOT just issued a proposed national traffic safety goal that doesn't include a specific target or goal for reducing the number of bicyclists and pedestrians killed on our roadways.
We know that without a specific target to focus the attention of state DOTs and USDOT on reducing bicyclist and pedestrian deaths within the overall number -- we get lost in the shuffle. At a time when cities like New York and San Francisco are adopting bold targets like Vision Zero, we believe the federal government should be expecting the same thing of themselves and state transportation agencies.
Please ask your members of Congress to sign on to the Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Act: HR 3494 / S 1708. If you just attended the National Bike Summit, it's the perfect excuse to follow up your meeting with a "Thank you" and a reminder of your request. If you weren't at the Summit, it's a great way to make your voice heard on this important issue.
Next week, we'll ask for your help in responding directly to the DOT's proposed safety target. Today, please join us in making sure your member of Congress supports a national goal to reduce the number of bicyclists and pedestrians injured and killed on our roads.
Sincerely,
Andy Clarke
President, League of American Bicyclists
Click the Take Action button at the bottom of this page.