REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. - It's an ominous statistic, as the summer season nears its end. As of Aug. 31, the amount of fatal pedestrian accidents have jumped by almost 70 percent in Delaware. This is despite the fact that, pedestrian accidents as a whole have dropped by about 17 percent. Below is a look at the numbers provided to WBOC by the Office of Highway Safety.
Total Pedestrian Accidents:
- 2014: 225
- 2015: 186
Total Fatal Pedestrian Accidents:
- 2014: 13
- 2015: 22
County Breakdown (2015)
- New Castle County - 138 Accidents (12 fatal - 9% fatality rate)
- Kent County - 28 Accidents (4 fatal - 14% fatality rate)
- Sussex County - 20 Accidents (6 fatal - 30% fatality rate).
Twenty-one-year old Marius Haanan was not too surprised to see the numbers. Haanan, who is from Romania, is spending the summer in Rehoboth Beach. WBOC caught up with Haanan on Monday morning as he rode his bicycle down the side of Coastal Highway.
"I do not feel safe," he said. "It's too dangerous. It's a highway. People are driving with speed."
It was back in June that 19-year old Nadii Misa was killed on her bike, as she rode in the area by the Food Lion shopping center, off of Route One. Haanan said this was a frightening example of what could happen when you ride your bike on Coastal Highway.
"It's very dangerous because people don't give attention to bikers," she said. "They are looking at their phone when they're driving."
Driver Joey Tabler of Lewes, said these increases should motivate more investment into the roads.
"As driving increases, it's something you have to expect," he said. "You hope that it can be fixed at some point soon."
