Pedestrian deaths are expected to reach an all-time high in Clark County by the end of this year.

2017 number expected to set a record

CLARK COUNTY is poised to reach a grim milestone with its deadliest year on record for pedestrians. Already, 58 walkers have been fatally struck by vehicles, matching the total number of deaths reported by the end of 2016. With more than two months remaining, the county will likely surpass an all-time high of 60 pedestrians killed in 2015, according to the state’s traffic safety office.

“That is not a record anyone wants to break,” said Andrew Bennett, a spokesman for the office. “It’s difficult to see these numbers going in the wrong direction. There’s no magic bullet to identify what’s going on with our roads, and it’s difficult to assign blame.”

High-speed roads, a scarcity of crosswalks, poorly lit streets and — in some cases — inattentive drivers and pedestrians contributed to the gradual rise in deaths, said Erin Breen, head of the Vulnerable Road Users Project at UNLV.

Breen said a greater concentration needs to be placed on road improvement projects, along with a countywide education campaign geared toward motorists and walkers.

“We all need to take a giant step back and admit that this is a safety problem for everyone,” Breen said. “If we just look at dealing with the walkers, or only go after the speeding drivers, then we are never going to stem the tide.”

Elusive zero

Fatal vehicle-versus-pedestrian

Art Marroquin Review-Journal

figures have ebbed and flowed since 1994, when the statistic was first tracked by the traffic safety office.

In an attempt to keep those numbers in check, state transportation officials launched a program 11 years ago known as Zero Fatalities, which

Elizabeth Brumley Las Vegas Review-Journal @EliPagePhoto A car passes a memorial site on Wednesday where three juveniles between the ages of 12 and 15 were hit by a car on Desert Inn Road east of Nellis Boulevard on Sept. 30.