A pedestrian was struck and killed Sunday on the 2700 block of Pacific Avenue near Tropicana Casino in Atlantic City, and the driver who hit them stopped at the scene and is cooperating with investigators. Police have not said whether the driver will face charges as the investigation continues.
Atlantic City police are investigating the deadly crash after authorities responded to reports of a person struck by a car, according to 6abc Philadelphia. The pedestrian died at the scene, and the station reports that no charges have been announced against the driver, who remained on scene and has been cooperating with the investigation.
Roadwork Added a Layer of Complication to the Corridor
The crash happened on a stretch of Pacific Avenue that has been under construction for weeks. The City of Atlantic City began a daytime repaving and milling project along Pacific Avenue from Hartford Avenue to Connecticut Avenue on September 21, 2026, according to the City of Atlantic City, work that directly affects traffic conditions along the 2700 block near Tropicana. It remains unclear what role, if any, the active lane changes or milling played in Sunday's crash.
New Jersey law sets a clear standard for how drivers must treat pedestrians in and near crosswalks. Under the state's Stop and Stay Stopped law, N.J.S.A. 39:4-36, drivers must come to a complete stop and remain stopped for pedestrians crossing within marked crosswalks or within one lane of the driver's side of the roadway, a violation that carries a $200 fine and two license points, per Mandelbaum Barrett PC. Separately, the state's Safe Passing Law requires drivers to change lanes or keep at least a four-foot buffer from pedestrians, or slow to 25 mph when that clearance isn't available, according to the New Jersey Department of Transportation. Whether the pedestrian was crossing within a marked crosswalk has not been addressed in reporting on the crash.
A Corridor With a History of Pedestrian Danger
The area around Tropicana has seen repeated pedestrian safety incidents in recent years. Just this past summer, on July 11, 2026, seven people were injured near the casino on the Boardwalk after two police ATVs collided and struck two pedestrians and a tram car, as reported by Downbeach BUZZ. Years earlier, in April 2019, a 32-year-old pedestrian was critically injured after being hit by an eastbound driver on Pacific Avenue near Iowa Avenue, adjacent to the Tropicana, according to WPG Talk Radio.
City-level crash data backs up the pattern. The Atlantic City Safety Action Plan found that pedestrian collisions, fixed-object impacts, and right-angle crashes together accounted for nearly 70 percent of all fatal and serious injury collisions citywide between 2017 and 2021, according to the City of Atlantic City. That plan is part of why the Atlantic City Police Department maintains enhanced seasonal and weekend officer deployments throughout the city's Tourism District along Pacific and Atlantic avenues, where casino-driven foot traffic runs heaviest, per the city.
County and State Numbers Show a Recent Decline
Sunday's fatality comes even as broader pedestrian safety trends in the region have been improving. New Jersey State Police crash statistics show pedestrian fatalities in Atlantic County fell 40 percent in 2025 to 12 deaths, down from 20 in 2024, according to 70and73.com. Statewide, pedestrian deaths dropped 27 percent in 2025 to 169, down from 230 the year before, the outlet reports.
That decline follows a grim peak the year before. Atlantic County recorded 58 fatal motor vehicle crashes in 2024, a 10-year high and the second-highest county total in New Jersey, prompting the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office and local police chiefs to launch targeted traffic enforcement drives, according to Galloway Patch. Sunday's death adds to a string of recent fatal incidents involving vulnerable road users in South Jersey, including a 7-year-old's minibike death in Atlantic City last month. No further details on potential charges or the circumstances of Sunday's crash have been released.
