Georgia has landed among the ten worst states in the country for pedestrian deaths involving children and teenagers, according to a new state-by-state ranking that found the state averaged 15.8 pedestrian deaths each year among residents ages 5 to 19 over a five-year stretch. The finding places Georgia ninth among the 50 states once population was factored in, and fourth in the nation for sheer number of young pedestrian deaths.
The ranking, first reported by The Georgia Sun, was compiled by the law firm Breakstone, White & Gluck using federal traffic death records and U.S. Census Bureau population data covering 2020 to 2024. Researchers calculated each state's average yearly deaths divided by its average population of residents ages 5 to 19, producing a rate meant to account for differences in state size. Georgia's rate came out to 7.19 pedestrian deaths per 1 million young residents, a figure drawn from a state with about 2.2 million residents in that age bracket, according to the outlet's report on the study.
Louisiana topped the list with the highest rate in the country at 10.11 deaths per million young residents, the report found. Oklahoma ranked just ahead of Georgia at 7.48, while Mississippi followed close behind at 6.97. On the other end of the spectrum, New Hampshire recorded just 0.88 deaths per million young residents and Massachusetts posted 1.48, while Rhode Island, Alaska, and Vermont recorded no pedestrian deaths at all in the 5-to-19 age group during the five-year period the study examined.
A Crisis That Predates This Study
The new ranking lands on top of a mountain of state data already showing pedestrian deaths climbing in Georgia across all age groups. Between 2014 and 2023, statewide pedestrian fatalities surged 90%, rising from 163 to 310 deaths a year, according to the Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety, far outpacing the 39% rise in overall traffic deaths over the same decade. Non-motorists, meaning pedestrians and bicyclists, made up 20% of all Georgia traffic fatalities in 2023 despite representing less than 1% of everyone involved in crashes statewide, the same office reported.
Georgia recorded 280 total pedestrian deaths in 2024, ranking fifth highest nationally behind only California, Texas, Florida, and New York, per the Governors Highway Safety Association. The following year, the Georgia Department of Transportation logged 257 pedestrian deaths statewide, with 84% occurring overnight and 95% happening outside a marked crosswalk — numbers that point to lighting and crossing infrastructure as recurring gaps in the state's roadway safety net.
Afternoon Hours Carry Outsized Risk for Kids
For children specifically, the most dangerous window falls in the afternoon. Federal data cited by the Georgia Department of Public Safety shows nearly one-third of child pedestrian fatalities happen between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m., overlapping directly with school dismissal, according to a report from Zdrilich Injury Law. Nationally, 171 children were killed as pedestrians in 2023, accounting for 17% of all child traffic deaths, with 63% of those occurring on weekdays, per National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data reported by WSB Radio.
Vehicle size is another factor researchers point to. Light trucks — the category covering SUVs, pickups, and vans — accounted for 50.4% of pedestrian fatalities nationwide in 2024, compared to 40.6% from standard passenger cars, according to the Georgia Injury Law Blog. As the American fleet skews larger, that shift has compounded the danger for anyone on foot, especially children who may be harder for drivers of taller vehicles to see.
State Lawmakers Have Moved, But Gaps Remain
Georgia has taken some legislative steps aimed at pedestrian safety. Under Georgia Code § 40-6-270, a driver who knowingly flees the scene of a crash resulting in severe injury or death commits a felony punishable by one to five years in prison, a statute Hoodline detailed in its reporting on a fatal hit-and-run near the Buford Highway Connector. Separately, Georgia enacted legislation in 2024 revising school-zone speed camera rules, requiring municipal authorities to file annual revenue reports and barring automated enforcement permits on four-lane roads that lack pedestrian crosswalks, according to a report cited by Atlanta News First.
Even so, open questions remain about whether sidewalk expansion, better street lighting, and safer crossings will reach the high-speed suburban arterials where young pedestrians face the greatest risk. Nationwide, pedestrian deaths hit a 40-year high of more than 7,700 in 2022 before easing slightly to 7,318 in 2023 and 7,148 in 2024 — levels the Governors Highway Safety Association notes remain nearly 20% above where they stood in 2016.
The new ranking arrives amid a string of fatal pedestrian incidents across metro Atlanta and beyond in recent months, including a death that shut down I-75 North in Buckhead and a hit-and-run near the Buford Highway Connector, both underscoring how the statistics in Georgia's youth pedestrian ranking are playing out on the state's roads in real time.
