A man was left in critical condition after he was struck by an oncoming car while standing near a disabled Chevy Malibu on Alum Creek Drive, close to the Interstate 270 ramp, on Sunday. The Franklin County Sheriff's Office is investigating the crash, which happened after the Malibu broke down in the northbound lane of the roadway.
According to Franklin County deputies, the man had been driving the Malibu when it broke down in the northbound lane of Alum Creek Drive near the interstate ramp. He was standing near the disabled car in the roadway when an oncoming vehicle struck him, deputies said, as reported by WSYX. He sustained critical injuries and was taken to the hospital, while the driver of the striking vehicle stayed at the scene and was not injured.
A Corridor With a History of Roadside Danger
Sunday's crash is not an isolated event on this stretch of road. Just two months earlier, in June 2026, a passenger standing outside a stopped vehicle while handling an item in the trunk on Alum Creek Drive near Groveport was struck and critically injured when an oncoming car collided with the vehicle, according to the Oliver Law Office. That incident bears a striking resemblance to Sunday's crash, both involving a bystander near a stopped car in active travel lanes.
The corridor's troubled history extends further back. In April 2023, a female pedestrian was critically injured after being hit on Alum Creek Drive near Toy Road in Hamilton Township, in a crash where the striking vehicle was identified by Franklin County Sheriff's deputies as a 2010 grey Chevy Malibu, per 10TV WBNS. And in June 2025, a pedestrian was struck and killed by a semitrailer at the intersection of Alum Creek Drive and Williams Road near Obetz, the outlet also reported.
Why the Road Poses Such a Risk
Part of the danger comes down to what Alum Creek Drive actually is: a primary industrial and freight corridor connecting Interstate 270 to Rickenbacker International Airport, placing it on both the National Highway System and the National Primary Freight Highway System, according to the Franklin County Engineer's Office. That designation means heavy commercial truck traffic moves alongside passenger vehicles at high speeds, leaving little margin for error when a car breaks down or a pedestrian ends up in the roadway.
Ohio law spells out specific duties for drivers in exactly this kind of situation. Under Ohio Revised Code Section 4511.213, motorists approaching a stationary emergency vehicle, tow truck, or disabled vehicle displaying hazard lights must proceed with caution and either move over a lane or slow down. Separately, Ohio Revised Code Section 4511.66 prohibits stopping or parking on the traveled portion of a highway outside municipal boundaries unless the vehicle is disabled to the point that stopping temporarily is unavoidable.
National Data Points to a Persistent Problem
The risks tied to roadside breakdowns are not unique to central Ohio. Research from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, cited by the Towing and Recovery Association of America, found that 63% of fatal crashes involving roadside assistance workers and stranded motorists occurred during darkness, and 63% involved a striking vehicle that veered out of its travel lane. A separate AAA study found that 36% of observed drivers failed to slow down or change lanes when passing roadside incident scenes, underscoring widespread non-compliance with move-over laws, per AAA Newsroom.
Franklin County's pedestrian crash numbers back up the concern locally. Ohio State Highway Patrol data published in 2022 showed that Franklin County recorded 2,824 pedestrian-involved traffic crashes between 2017 and mid-2022, the highest total of any county in the state. The Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission has also reported that more than 200 people are killed annually in traffic crashes across the 10-county Central Ohio region, a toll that continues to drive local efforts to target high-injury arterial corridors like Alum Creek Drive.
It remains unclear whether the Malibu's hazard lights were illuminated at the time of Sunday's crash, or exactly where the man was standing relative to the travel lane. The Franklin County Sheriff's Office Crash Investigation Unit has not indicated whether speed or a failure to clear the lane will factor into any citation decisions as the investigation continues.
