Report: Number of pedestrian deaths up 77%

(CNN, KYMA/KECY) - Just walking along a roadway has apparently gotten a lot more dangerous in the last decade.

The Governor's Highway Safety Association released a study that found American drivers killed at least 7,500 pedestrians in 2022.

That's the most deaths of any year since 1981.

On top of that, pedestrian deaths rose 77% between 2010 and 2021.

This comes after decades of seeing a decline in the number of pedestrians killed by drivers.

Experts blame the rise in deaths on faster driving speeds, as well as the lack of sidewalks and other pedestrian-friendly infrastructure on many roads across the country.

They also point to the shift in popularity for increasingly heavier and high-riding trucks and SUV's.