Columbia

Study Reveals 25 Most Dangerous DC Intersections for Pedestrians

An average of three pedestrians are hit in D.C. every day

A new study has named the 25 most dangerous intersections in the District and says distracted drivers are often to blame for trouble on the roads.

About 5,300 pedestrians were struck by cars in D.C. between 2009 and 2015, according to the study done by the law firm Trombly & Singer, PLLC.

The highest concentration of pedestrian collisions happened in downtown D.C., followed by Dupont Circle and Columbia Heights, the study found.

"You know, they really are trying to make it pedestrian friendly -- but people just don't care," pedestrian Randy Weiss said. 

The study named the intersection of Minnesota Avenue and Benning Road NE the most dangerous place for pedestrians, with 10 collisions and 14 injuries. The intersection earned a "danger index" of 53, which is based on the high volume of high-speed traffic and pedestrians in the area.

Southern Avenue SE near Owens Road took the second spot on the danger list, with a danger index of 51.

The third intersection, 12th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW, also earned a danger index of 51. The fourth most dangerous intersection was 14th and U Street NW, with a danger index of 47.

"I'm finding that in some of our cases, we are learning as we drill down, that the person who was operating the car, who hit our client, was on a cellphone," said attorney Kenneth Trombly, who teamed up with data visualization and visual content agency 1 Point 21 Interactive for the study.

But drivers are not the only ones who are distracted.

"[Pedestrians] are distracted -- they're looking down at their cell phones. They're paying attention to their friends and talking and not really looking at what's going on. So, yeah, it can be quite hazardous," said driver Craig Wasilewsky.

Below is the full list of the 25 most dangerous areas in D.C. for pedestrians:

1. 4000 Minnesota Ave. NE

2. 800 Southern Ave. SE

3. 12th St. NW & Pennsylvania Ave. NW

4. 14th St. & U St. NW

5. Georgia Ave. & Kennedy St. NW

6. 4th St. & Rhode Island Ave. NE

7. New York Ave. & North Capitol St. NW

8. 3500 Georgia Ave. NW

9. 1300 K St. NW

10. 16th St. & L St. NW

11. 3000 14th St. NW

12. 7th St. NW & K St. NW

13. Benning Road NE & East Capitol St.

14. 13th St. & U St. NW

15. 1050 Brentwood Road NE

16. 5th St. & H St. NW

17. 3100 14th St. NW

18. 2100 Martin Luther King Ave. SE

19. 1310 Southern Ave. SE

20. H St. NE & North Capitol St.

21. 3900 Minnesota Ave. NE

22. 4200 Wisconsin Ave. NW

23. Bladensburg Road & New York Ave. NE

24. Howard Road SE & Martin Luther King Jr Ave. SE

25. 50 Massachusetts Ave.

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