SAN DIEGO (NEWS 8) — A new study is shedding light on pedestrian safety across San Diego County.
It found the most dangerous intersections were in Hillcrest, Escondido, Linda Vista, Chula Vista and Oak Park.
The intersection on Clairemont Mesa and Shawline made the study’s list of 200 of the worst for walkers here in San Diego.
The study surveyed accident reports in the last 6 years, detailing injuries and even deaths for some pedestrians.
"Intersections where there’s more distractions or there’s blindspots, you see a lot more collisions," said attorney Mike Bomberger who authored the dangerous roads study.
Bomberger has represented victims of brutal pedestrian accidents
"It can run the gambit from abrasions to fractures to brain injuries to death," he said.
To dig into why some San Diego streets are more unsafe than others, Bomberger's firm conducted a “most dangerous intersections for pedestrians” study.
"[The] large majority of the accidents occur in a very small area: Downtown, Hillcrest and Pacific Beach," he said.
An interactive map shows the hundreds of rough intersections in the county narrowed down to 218 for the number of accidents and injuries.
"University Avenue [is] a fairly dangerous place to be traveling across the street," said Bomberger.
4 of the top 10 most dangerous are along University Avenue.
In Hillcrest, University and First is noted as one of the most dangerous intersections for pedestrians to cross for its poorly maintained crosswalks as well as its dim lighting - all are safety issues.
University and First ranked first on the list with 20 collisions since 2010.
Second is Escondido’s Valley Parkway and Midway Drive with 13 crashes and 2 fatalities.
Next is Linda Vista and Ulric Street - known for beat up roads and busyness of 28,000 vehicles a day.
Fourth on the list is Fourth Avenue and C in Chula Vista followed by Oak Park’s Federal Boulevard and Euclid Avenue
"We’re hoping that by identifying these intersections that are more dangerous, the city and the county can take a look at these intersections and say 'what can we do differently with our design?'" said Bomberger.