Distracted Pedestrians A Factor As NJ Car Crash Deaths Rise
By Mike DeNardo
TRENTON, N.J (CBS) - Year-end figures in New Jersey show an uptick in traffic deaths over 2013, with pedestrian fatalities responsible for the increase.
Overall, the traffic death trend line points down over the last two decades. But New Jersey State Police say a spike in pedestrian fatalities caused an increase in total traffic deaths over 2013's all-time low.
State Police Captain Steven Jones says distracted walking is an issue, with pedestrians absorbed in their cell phone screens.
In addition to that, "there's a trend in earphones that has been going much larger," Jones says. "These big, cupped earphones block out a lot of the road sound and if people aren't paying attention, they're walking out into the road without without the benefit of hearing traffic coming up on them."
A total of 563 people died in New Jersey motor vehicle crashes last year, compared to the record low of 542 in 2013.
There were 170 pedestrian deaths in 2014, 38 more than the year before.
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