News

Recent Pedestrian Fatalities are a Disturbing but Not Surprising Trend.


Posted on Feb 15, 2012


A Lake City man died after being struck by a car in northern Columbia County on January 22.

Florida Highway Patrol reports that the man was walking south on the east shoulder of U.S. 441 north of Interstate 10 at approximately 8:00 p.m.  He was walking toward traffic and straddling on or around the white painted line of the shoulder.  The driver of a 1999 Chevrolet Tracker was traveling north on U.S. 441 when she struck the pedestrian, who was pronounced dead at the scene.  The driver, who is also from Lake City, claims that she never saw the pedestrian.

On January 24 at approximately 9:00 p.m., a man from Ocala walked into the middle of the I-75 freeway and was struck and killed by a car.  The man is believed to have been a homeless vagabond.

Florida Highway Patrol reports that the pedestrian was walking south in the right travel lane on I-75 near the County Road 484 entrance (Mile Marker 340).  He was not near or straddling the shoulder and was wearing dark jeans and a dark flannel shirt while carrying a backpack.  A man driving a Chevrolet Malibu was also traveling south in the right lane when his car struck the pedestrian from behind and threw him onto the hood.  The Malibu traveled another 180 feet before the pedestrian fell from the hood and onto the highway.

The driver explained at the scene that he was traveling from Atlanta to Florida on business.  While he was driving, the pedestrian was suddenly “just there” standing in the middle of the freeway.  The pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene.  Investigators still do not know why the man was walking on the highway.

Six months ago, FHP investigated another traffic death involving a pedestrian who was also killed on I-75 about a half mile away from where the current accident occurred.

The recent number of pedestrian traffic fatalities is a disturbing trend but it should not surprise us.  The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) reports that pedestrians killed while walking along the roadway account for almost 8% of all pedestrians killed in traffic accidents in Florida.  FHWA claims that nearly 90% of these pedestrian tragedies are preventable by providing walkways that are separated from the travel lanes as opposed to shoulders, which are really just an extension of the road itself.   It is also important to note that walking on the Interstate is illegal.

For more information, please see,

Why Ocala Accident Attorney Urges Widening of Shoulders For Pedestrian Roadway Safety

Read More About Recent Pedestrian Fatalities are a Disturbing but Not Surprising Trend....

back to top





We at the Law Office of Jeffrey Meldon and Associates strongly believe that public education is the first step in the prevention of an accident or in the recovery from one.  

We are experienced personal injury attorneys, trial lawyers, negotiators, litigators, paralegals, and staff that have been proudly working to get accident victims the justice they deserve for over 30 years in Gainesville, Ocala, Lake City, Inverness, and the rest of North Central Florida and North Florida. Accidents involving a car crash, truck wreck, and motorcycle, bicycle, or pedestrian accidents, dog bites, slip and falls and medical malpractice are all included in our practice.

Based on Jeffrey Meldon's, founder of The Law Office of Jeffrey Meldon & Associates, over 30 years of helping accident victims get justice and a fair shake from the insurance companies, he has written the consumer guide book, Seven Mistakes That Can Wreck Your Florida Accident Case.  You can request your free, no obligation copy right now, or contact our office for your complimentary copy sent to you today.

Contact the Law Office of Jeffrey Meldon at (800) 373-8000 or (352) 373-8000 immediately if you have been involved in a serious auto, truck, or motorcycle accident.  We are in your community, have the experience and resources required to work towards obtaining a fair settlement for you - we are here to help you.

We proudly handle accidents that occur on all roads and in the areas including: I-75, I-10, I-95, U.S. Route 301, U.S. Route 441, State Road 40, State Road 26, State Road 24, Archer Road, Main St, and University Avenue.  Our law firm has  been representing accident victims in Gainesville, Ocala, Lake City, Inverness, Palatka, Crystal River, Daytona Beach, Interlachen, Spring Hill, Dunnellon, Bunnell, Live Oak, Starke, Jasper, Cross City, Perry, Trenton,  Leesberg,  Lake Butler,  Tavares, Chiefland, Bronson, Brooksville, The Villages and the counties of Alachua, Marion, Columbia, Citrus, Volusia, Sumter, Levy, Lake, Bradford, Flagler, Hamilton, Dixie, Gilchrist, Union, Hernando, Suwannee, Union, and Putnam, and, since 1971!