Walking is a great form of exercise for most Maryland residents. Unfortunately, it can also be dangerous. Although most people take great care to look both ways before crossing the street and stick to well-lit areas, they are simply no match for large motor vehicles. Because of this, virtually anyone can be at risk for a pedestrian accident.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, pedestrians are the most susceptible group on the road. This includes children in strollers and individuals who use wheelchairs. On average, approximately one pedestrian is killed every two hours and around 430 more seek treatment in emergency departments for every 24 hours. In 2013, this totaled to over 156,000 visiting ERs and 4,735 fatalities.

As we’ve discussed on our blog before, more people than ever are now choosing to forgo their vehicles in favor of going by mass transit, bicycle or even on foot. The motivations for this drastic lifestyle change vary, of course, with some motivated by environmental concerns, others by finances and still others by healthy living.

As we’ve also discussed, however, this decision, while laudable, is not without risk given the dangerous driving practices of motorists from speeding to distracted driving.

Consider the recently released report from the Governors Highway Safety Association, which found that preliminary data from state highway safety offices indicated that 2016 was the most deadly year for pedestrians in a decade.

Indeed, the GHSA report found that 5,997 pedestrians lost their lives last year, an 11 percent increase from 2015 and yet another notch on an upward trend that has seen pedestrian deaths rise by 12 percent since 1996.

When the Governors Highway Safety Association published its annual findings on the number of pedestrian fatalities here in the U.S. last year, there was no shortage of shock and outrage. Indeed, it was hoped that the revelation that the number of pedestrian fatalities had increased by more than 9 percent from 2014 to 2015 would serve as something of a wakeup call to motorists, pedestrians and lawmakers.

Fast forward to the present and, in an unsettling turn of events, it appears as if this wakeup call has gone largely unanswered.

After examining preliminary data from the highway safety offices of all 50 states and the District of Columbia, GHSA researchers have determined that there were 2,660 pedestrian fatalities in the U.S. during the first six months of 2016 as compared with 2,486 during the same timeframe in 2015.