A 43-year-old Gray man died early Sunday morning after being struck by a vehicle on Louisiana Highway 3040 near Westside Boulevard in Terrebonne Parish, according to preliminary findings from investigators. The pedestrian was reportedly walking south in the left lane of the highway, the same direction as the southbound traffic that struck him, when a 2020 Nissan Pathfinder traveling south in that lane hit him.
The pedestrian suffered serious injuries and was transported to a local hospital, where he later died, according to KQKI News. The driver of the Pathfinder was not injured.
Investigation Still Open as Toxicology Results Await
Louisiana State Police Troop C began investigating the crash, which remains under investigation. State police said the driver was not suspected of impairment, and he voluntarily provided a breath sample that did not detect alcohol, the outlet's report notes.
Even so, a standard toxicology sample was collected from the pedestrian and submitted for analysis.
A Statutory Question Hangs Over the Crash Site
Under Louisiana Revised Statute 32:216, when a highway has no sidewalk, pedestrians are legally required to walk on the left side of the roadway or shoulder, facing oncoming traffic, according to Justia Law. That rule exists so pedestrians can see approaching vehicles and react. Preliminary investigation findings, however, indicated the victim was walking south in the left lane in the same direction as southbound traffic — the opposite of what the statute directs when no sidewalk is present.
Troop C, the agency now investigating the crash, is headquartered in Gray, Louisiana. The troop serves south-central Louisiana, and its patrol area covers five parishes in total — according to the Louisiana State Troopers Association.
Safety Overhaul Was Already in the Works for This Corridor
On August 18, the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development held a public open house in Houma about proposed safety improvements along LA Highway 3040.
LA Highway 3040, also known as Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in the Houma area.
Corridor Has Seen Fatal Crashes Before
This is not the first fatal crash Troop C has investigated along this stretch of highway. In August 2021, the agency investigated another fatal crash along LA Highway 3040 at Enterprise Drive in Terrebonne Parish, which claimed the life of a 63-year-old motorcyclist.
The crash also arrives amid a broader statewide picture on traffic safety. Statewide traffic fatalities across Louisiana dropped to 389 between January 1 and September 14 this year, down from 515 traffic deaths recorded during the same period in 2025, according to Destination Zero Deaths. Pedestrian deaths specifically have remained a persistent concern in recent years: statewide pedestrian fatalities reached an all-time high of 185 in 2021 before staying elevated at 183 in 2022, a total that was 24.5% above the state's five-year average, per the LSU Center for Analytics & Research in Transportation Safety.
For now, the exact circumstances of Sunday's crash remain under review. State police have not released the identity of the man who died, and the full crash reconstruction is pending toxicology analysis and completion of the official report.
