We saw the headlines in the local news: Memphis is ranked #1 as the most dangerous city for pedestrians. The comment section of those headlines mentioned fast cars, potholes, uncontrolled drivers, the lack of traffic enforcement, and even, shamefully, the victims themselves as the sources of the increase in pedestrian deaths. However, one of the greatest contributors to pedestrian fatalities was never mentioned: design.

The way our roads are designed influences the way people drive. Our roads are designed to enable high-speed travel. According to the 2024 Dangerous By Design Study, “Many of the most dangerous roads have multiple wide, straight, high-speed lanes along with other design elements that send powerful but unconscious signals to drivers that the street is built primarily for moving vehicles as quickly as possible, even when it’s filled with numerous destinations and people walking to reach them… Many roads lack frequent crosswalks or signals to protect people crossing the street, or safe crossings are missing in places where people most often want to cross. All of these design elements are focused on improving throughput or prioritizing moving as many vehicles as quickly as possible over the needs of other people using the road, like those walking.”

Designing roads for maximum car speed would be fine if we were not also moving a lot of cars through communities. The study also points out that “despite being designed primarily for moving cars quickly, these streets also serve as neighborhood streets, economic drivers for local commerce, and vital connections to work, school, parks, and more. They move a lot of cars through communities. But in doing so, they create substantial risk for people who live in these communities who simply want to cross the street to get to a corner store, park, school, or other everyday destinations.”

We know it to be true too, we have heard the criticism of people oriented road infrastructure “that road is horrible, I have to go so slow and be so vigilant.” As if we should not always use caution when operating a vehicle that can so easily take a life. Why is that our reaction? Perhaps it is because we have been conditioned to believe that efficient travel is more about speed than safety.  All of this is to say a lot of the pedestrian deaths that we see in this city and throughout the country are preventable by simply designing safer people oriented roads. By prioritizing thoughtful and pedestrian-friendly design practices, we can truly make strides in ensuring safer streets for everyone.

To learn more about the correlation between design and safety please read the whole report here.

And Check out some of the highlights that have happened in our network

Jared and the Heights CDC -Smart Growth America: Walking in Memphis

Jackson McNeil from Innovate Memphis- Smart Growth America Spotlight