Watch Your Step Tomorrow

Please be careful if you're out walking late tonight and tomorrow: January 1st is the deadliest day of the year for pedestrians. The outlook for drivers isn't much better, writes Sarah Kliff.

1 minute read

December 31, 2012, 1:00 PM PST

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj


Those behind the wheel aren't the only ones who should be wary of the perils of overindulgence on the last day of the holiday season.

"Researchers in the journal Injury Prevention counted 99 pedestrian deaths on Jan. 1 between 1986 and 2002, making it the deadliest day for pedestrians in the calendar year. Those deaths were more likely to occur in the early hours of the morning, with 48 percent happening between midnight and 6 a.m. Overall, only 20 percent of pedestrian deaths happen in that time frame," says Kliff.

"New Year’s Day isn’t a great time to be in a car, either. Overall, New Year’s Day has the fifth-highest number of car crash deaths (July 4 tops the list)."

Monday, December 31, 2012 in The Washington Post

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