When a pedestrian is struck by a motor vehicle, it nearly always results in an injury to the pedestrian and is significantly more likely to result in a fatality than in a vehicle-to-vehicle crash. On average, there are nearly 4,400 pedestrian fatalities and 69,000 pedestrian injuries each year. (1-2)

Many of these crashes are due to a violation of the law by the pedestrian or the driver, acting intentionally or unintentionally. However, because many pedestrians and drivers believe there is little risk of being stopped or receiving a citation for violating a pedestrian law, they often do not bother obeying the law even if they know it.