248 pages
6 x 9
The face of the pedestrian safety crisis looks a lot like Ignacio Duarte-Rodriguez. The 77-year old grandfather was struck in a hit-and-run crash while trying to cross a high-speed, six-lane road without crosswalks near his son’s home in Phoenix, Arizona. He was one of the more than 6,000 people killed while walking in America in 2018. In the last ten years, there has been a 50 percent increase in pedestrian deaths.
The tragedy of traffic violence has barely registered with the media and wider culture. Disproportionately the victims are like Duarte-Rodriguez—immigrants, the poor, and people of color. They have largely been blamed and forgotten.
In Right of Way, journalist Angie Schmitt shows us that deaths like Duarte-Rodriguez’s are not unavoidable “accidents.” They don’t happen because of jaywalking or distracted walking. They are predictable, occurring in stark geographic patterns that tell a story about systemic inequality. These deaths are the forgotten faces of an increasingly urgent public-health crisis that we have the tools, but not the will, to solve.
Schmitt examines the possible causes of the increase in pedestrian deaths as well as programs and movements that are beginning to respond to the epidemic. Her investigation unveils why pedestrians are dying—and she demands action. Right of Way is a call to reframe the problem, acknowledge the role of racism and classism in the public response to these deaths, and energize advocacy around road safety. Ultimately, Schmitt argues that we need improvements in infrastructure and changes to policy to save lives.
Right of Way unveils a crisis that is rooted in both inequality and the undeterred reign of the automobile in our cities. It challenges us to imagine and demand safer and more equitable cities, where no one is expendable.
"In a book that will sit comfortably on the shelf next to Ralph Nader’s Unsafe at Any Speed, Schmitt provides an exhaustively researched study of the intersection of automobiles and pedestrians…[Right of Way] bravely exposes the human cost of public and political indifference toward pedestrian safety."
Kirkus Reviews
"An exposé drawing upon comprehensive reporting to articulate the root causes of a public health crisis."
USA Today
"In a thoughtful, accessible style, Schmitt examines the factors contributing to rising pedestrian deaths and offers practical solutions to help make America's streets safer and more walkable."
Shelf Awareness
"An excellent new book"
Planetizen
"There are many reasons to read Right of Way… Schmitt is one of the very best contemporary journalist-advocates writing on the built environment, whose skills are most obvious when digging beneath the numbers to tell the stories of humanity, not only to the illuminating the faces and lives of the departed, but also to the specific design and political failures that allow this carnage to continue unabated."
Planetizen: Top Urban Planning Books of 2020
"Right of Way shines a light on the distressing spike in pedestrian fatalities in the United States and documents why this epidemic has not proceeded uniformly across the country but instead has disproportionately devastated low-income communities and people of color....A poignant through-line of [the book] is the care with which victim’s stories are told. The author sensitively transforms statistics on pedestrian fatalities into vignettes that remind the reader of the pain that each crash leaves, from small children to the woman who became the first pedestrian ever killed by a self-driving
car."
Journal of the American Planning Association
"[Right of Way] boldly weaves many heart-wrenching stories related to policy, infrastructure, and cultural failures that result in the cold fact that every ninety minutes someone is killed as they walk or cycle American city streets. In ten chapters, Schmitt adroitly confronts such traffic violence as the interface between racism, victim-blaming, SUV arms races, and federal design policies that all contribute to a growing public health crisis brushed aside for decades."
Transport Reviews
"I am most often asked by well-meaning persons, usually racialized white persons, 'What can I/we do as allies to aid in the eradication of pedestrian injuries and fatalities in low-income and minority communities across America?' My short answer usually stresses the importance of intentionality, empathy, and the courage to act expeditiously. Henceforth, I will add to my list, 'Follow Angie'."
Charles T. Brown, MPA, CPD, Senior Researcher and Adjunct Professor, Voorhees Transportation Center, Rutgers University
"Other countries have cars, other countries drive a lot, but no advanced nation succeeds quite like ours in murdering its citizens with automobiles. The reason behind this fact is deep yet simple: our urban streets are engineered to kill. Nobody explains this better than Angie Schmitt."
Jeff Speck, author of "Walkable City" and "Walkable City Rules"
Contents
Foreword by Charles T. Brown
Introduction: Outline of an Epidemic
Chapter 1. The Geography of Risk
Chapter 2. The Profile of a Victim
Chapter 3. Blaming the Victim
Chapter 4. The Criminalization of Walking
Chapter 5. Killer Cars
Chapter 6. The Ideology of Flow
Chapter 7. A Hard Right Turn
Chapter 8. Pedestrian Safety on the Technological Frontier
Chapter 9. The International Context
Chapter 10. Families for Safe Streets
Conclusion
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index
About the Author
Join America Walks September 8th (10-11am Pacific, 1-2pm Eastern) for a review and discussion of Angie Schmitt’s new book, Right of Way: Race, Class, and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America. Angie was the long-time national editor at Streetsblog and her writing has appeared in the New York Times, The Atlantic, Bicycling, GOOD, and Landscape Architecture Magazine. Right of Way documents the traffic violence that occurs daily on America’s streets and reveals the racist policies and practices that create this tragedy.
The webinar will be hosted by Charles Brown, America Walks Board Member and senior researcher with the Alan M. Voorhees Transportation Center at Rutgers University, who wrote the foreword to the book.
In the last ten years, there has been a 50 percent increase in pedestrian deaths. In 2018 alone more than 6,000 pedestrians were killed while walking in America. Yet, despite the increase in deaths, the tragedy of traffic violence has barely registered with the media and wider culture. Disproportionately, the victims are immigrants, the poor, and people of color. They have largely been blamed and forgotten. The media barely covers these tragedies as they victims often in low-income neighborhoods.
What appears at first to be “accidentals”, under greater scrutiny, reveals itself to be a predictable, stark geographic patterns that tell a story about systemic inequality. These deaths are the forgotten faces of an increasingly urgent public-health crisis that we have the tools, but not the will, to solve.
Why are these people dying? What’s necessary to reframe the problem, acknowledge racism and classism in our public response to safety, and energize road safety advocates? How can we create programs, policies, and movements that respond to the epidemic?
In this webinar you'll hear from multiple people working on the front lines of pedestrian advocacy:
Join Next City for a webinar with guest presenter Angie Schmitt, who will discuss her new book Right of Way: Race, Class, and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America, on Wednesday, September 30 at 1 p.m. Eastern time.
A common assumption is that instances of traffic violence are both unpredictable and unavoidable. But with her new book, Right of Way: Race, Class, and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America, Angie Schmitt debunks this notion and unpacks the trends in pedestrian safety that disproportionately impact people of color and people experiencing economic hardship.
According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, 2018 saw 6,283 pedestrian deaths. That number roughly breaks down to 1 death every 88 minutes over the entire year. If we look at these numbers based on race and wealth, we find that people of color and people with low incomes have a higher chance of being killed in traffic crashes.
As Schmitt reported in a 2017 article for Streetsblog, pedestrians of color in Louisiana are nine times more likely to die in a traffic crash compared with white people. Additionally, locations with higher populations of people living below the poverty line tend to have less infrastructure that would guard against fatal crashes.
“Right of Way is a call to reframe the problem, acknowledge the role of racism and classism in the public response to these deaths, and energize advocacy around road safety,” reads the book synopsis.
Angie Schmitt is a well-known transportation writer and planner based in Cleveland. She is the author of the upcoming book “Right of Way: Race, Class and the Silent Crisis of Pedestrian Deaths in America,” which will be published Aug. 27th by Island Press. Her writing and commentary have appeared in the New York Times, the Atlantic, NPR and elsewhere. She was the long time national editor for Streetsblog. Schmitt is the founder of the Cleveland-based urban planning firm 3MPH, which specializes in pedestrian safety.
This webinar is to pay what you wish to register. Pay any amount that you would like or nothing at all. Those who become sustaining members of at least $5 a month, or who make a one-time donation of at least $20, may receive “19 Best Solutions of 2019” — Next City’s solutions of the year magazine. Your contribution toward this seminar will be used to find even more amazing guests, cover hosting fees and organize seminars like this one more frequently. A video of the webinar will be made available to those who register.
Last year, 6,590 people were hit and killed while walking in the United States — the highest number in 30 years. In the new book, Right of Way, journalist Angie Schmitt shows us that these deaths are not unavoidable “accidents.” They don’t happen because of jaywalking or distracted walking. They are predictable, and occur in geographic patterns that tell a story about systemic inequality and the undeterred reign of the automobile in our cities. The victims are disproportionately people of color, immigrants, and poor. Far too often, the victims are unfairly blamed and forgotten. Join us to dive into the research and realities behind why pedestrians are dying, and how we can imagine and demand safer, equitable cities here in the Bay Area.
Co-presented by Walk San Francisco and Island Press.
+ Angie Schmitt / author
+ Marta Lindsey / Walk SF
Healthy, vibrant communities are often places where you can walk safely to school, the grocery store, or just down the street to a neighbors house. Walkable communities are good for our physical health, but also our neighborhood's health. And yet, pedestrian deaths are up 50% in the last decade, and the stark geographic patterns of traffic violence tell a story about systemic inequality—where immigrants, the poor, and people of color are disproportionately impacted by traffic violence. In this live webinar, hear about some of the causes of this public-health crisis, and learn about some of the programs and movements that are beginning to respond. You'll also hear from every day neighbors who stepped up to address pedestrian safety in their communities, and see how you could do it too.
Panelists for the webinar are:
This webinar is co-hosted by ioby.
Angie Schmitt, the long-time national editor at Streetsblog, is one of the country's best known writers and experts on sustainable transportation. Her commentary has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, and National Public Radio.
The tragedy of traffic violence has barely registered with the media and wider culture. Disproportionately the victims are immigrants, the poor, and people of color. They have largely been blamed and forgotten. Schmitt's book, Right of Way, unveils a crisis rooted in both inequality and the undeterred reign of the automobile in our cities. It challenges us to imagine and demand safer and more equitable cities, where no one is expendable.
Moderated by David King, assistant professor in ASU's School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning.
More than 6,000 pedestrians are killed every year on US streets, representing an enormous 50% increase from the first part of the decade. For the Latinx population in particular, walking, biking, and using public transportation are the most affordable mobility options, thus putting the population at a higher risk of pedestrian death. Additionally, there's a lack of Latinx participation in the transportation planning process. The US-Latinx population's unique cultural perspective is needed in community development. Angie Schmitt, author of the new book Right of Way: Race, Class and the Silent Crisis of Pedestrian Deaths in America, will talk about the social trends that are putting people at risk. James Rojas, founder of the Latino Urban Forum, will discuss why it's important to incorporate the Latinx experience into mobility design throughout the built environment.
Presenters:
This Walkinar will examine a broad range of issues related to pedestrian safety, including planning, equity, and enforcement. This will include discussion of recent efforts to calculate a “Pedestrian Level of Comfort” in Montgomery County, and efforts on behalf of MDOT’s State Highway Administration to ensure that roadway design features reflect user needs and respond to land use contexts.
Panelists will discuss how to improve how infrastructure is used, and how to cultivate more safe and respectful attitudes and behaviors that reflect the lawful use of shared public spaces. Finally, the session will highlight disturbing trends underpinning America’s crisis in pedestrian safety – and discuss the critical theme of equity in seeking solutions.
Panelists:
The number of pedestrian deaths has been rising in recent years. What can communities do to turn this around?
Join the Smart Growth Network at 1:00 p.m. EDT, Tuesday, April 12, as Angie Schmitt, author of the book Right of Way, explains why many pedestrian deaths are avoidable and what communities can do to reframe the problem, make improvements, and help to save lives.
Participants of the live webinar are eligible for 1.5 AICP CM credits (live attendance required).
Join us for an insightful discussion on the future of transportation safety with Angie Schmitt, author of Right of Way: Race, Class, and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America. This event, hosted by the Arizona Partnership for Healthy Communities, Urban Phoenix Project, and Living Streets Alliance, will explore the vital importance of multi-modal transportation and how we can build safer, more accessible streets for everyone.
Why Attend?
This is a unique opportunity to hear from one of the leading voices in transportation safety and to engage with local experts and advocates. Whether you’re a bike enthusiast, a pedestrian advocate, or someone passionate about safer streets, this event is for you.
Panelists:
This event is free to attend. Food and beverages will be available for purchase. To support this work, please consider donating to Urban Phoenix Project and Living Streets Alliance.
Please register by Friday, November 8, to guarantee your seat.
Join us for an insightful discussion on the future of transportation safety with Angie Schmitt, author of Right of Way: Race, Class, and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America. This event, hosted by the Arizona Partnership for Healthy Communities, Urban Phoenix Project, and Living Streets Alliance, will explore the vital importance of multi-modal transportation and how we can build safer, more accessible streets for everyone.
Why Attend?
This is a unique opportunity to hear from one of the leading voices in transportation safety and to engage with local experts and advocates. Whether you’re a bike enthusiast, a pedestrian advocate, or someone passionate about safer streets, this event is for you.
Panelists:
This event is free to attend. Food and beverages will be available for purchase. To support this work, please consider donating to Urban Phoenix Project and Living Streets Alliance.
Please register by Friday, November 8, to guarantee your seat.
