A pedestrian was hospitalized in critical condition after being struck by a vehicle on Mudd Avenue near Moss Street in Lafayette on Friday, Nov. 6, around 6:15 p.m. The crash shut down the roadway for hours as investigators worked the scene in the 900 block of Mudd Avenue.
According to Acadiana News First, the driver had been traveling west on Mudd Avenue behind another vehicle that slowed down in preparation to turn. Rather than wait, the driver veered into the center turning lane to pass it, hitting the pedestrian in the process. As reported by 96.5 KPEL, Lafayette Police Department officers responded to the pedestrian-crash call at 6:18 p.m.
The pedestrian was transported to a local hospital and listed in critical condition, per the same account. Police have not released the pedestrian's identity. The driver who struck them was issued a citation, and officers said impairment was not a factor in the crash.
Road Reopened After Hours-Long Closure
Mudd Avenue was closed between Park Avenue and Duval Street during the investigation, Acadiana News First reports, and the roadway reopened by 9 p.m. KLFY confirms the crash occurred in the 900 block of Mudd Avenue and notes that it remains under investigation. The Lafayette Police Department's traffic unit is handling the case, and no further updates on the pedestrian's condition or any additional findings have been released.
Part of a Troubling Pattern on Lafayette Streets
The crash adds to a string of serious pedestrian incidents that have drawn scrutiny to Lafayette's roadways in recent years. Fatal or serious-injury crashes across the city jumped 168% between 2019 and 2023, according to CARTS data cited by The Current, with 2023 setting a record of 225 such crashes. Over that same five-year span, the city recorded 39 pedestrian deaths and 57 serious pedestrian injuries, the outlet reported, and Lafayette Parish ranked third in the state for pedestrian fatalities or injuries despite being only the fifth-largest parish in Louisiana.
A related report from the same outlet found that Lafayette Parish logged 54 pedestrian and cyclist fatalities between 2019 and 2023, citing CARTS data, and noted that a TRIP National Transportation Research Group report found 65% of the parish's state and major local roadways were in poor or mediocre condition. Mudd Avenue itself has seen tragedy before: a 16-year-old boy was killed at the intersection of Mudd Avenue and NE Evangeline Thruway after the vehicle he was riding in ran a red light, according to The Advocate.
Other recent crashes underscore the risks pedestrians and cyclists face around the city. In January 2025, 20-year-old bicyclist Cierra Robertson died after swerving off a sidewalk on the Evangeline Thruway and into a truck, per The Current's reporting. A separate fatal pedestrian crash occurred around 7 p.m. in the 900 block of East University Avenue, according to 97.3 The Dawg. Friday's crash on Mudd Avenue remains under investigation, and no additional details on the driver's citation or the pedestrian's condition have been made public.
