ST. LOUIS – When Justin Turner is about to walk across Grand Boulevard near Tower Grove Park, he takes nothing for granted.

“If the light’s red, you should still be looking,” he said.

Grand is one of the streets Trailnet, an agency advocating for safer streets for cyclists and pedestrians, reports it as one of the most dangerous in the St. Louis area.

“We’re continuing to see pedestrians being at risk along our arterials,” said Cindy Mense, Trailnet CEO.  “These are roads that are wide and fast and don’t have enough crossings for people.”

She said many of those streets have a speed limit of 35 mph, but drivers are often exceeding that limit.

On Thursday, Trailnet released a crash report that determined 2024 was the deadliest year for pedestrians in St. Louis City and St. Louis County. 

The report found a 187% increase in pedestrian fatalities in the City of St. Louis in 2024.  In St. Louis County, the number climbed 24%.  The large jump for the city can be attributed in part to the fact that the previous year saw a decline, but Trailnet discovered an overall trend.

“We also looked at 10 years of data and we see this consistent, you know, just the fatality rates going up on a consistent basis,” Mense said.

In 2024, 23 pedestrians were killed in St. Louis City.  In St. Louis County, the report found 36 pedestrians were killed in St. Louis County.

“Slow down,” said Angela Jones, a St. Louis resident living on Natural Bridge.  “I’m afraid my house is going to get hit.”

Natural Bridge underwent a series of traffic calming measures, including mid-block crosswalks with rapid flashing beacons and additional crosswalk lighting.  Roundabouts and additional medians were also added.

“Immediately they saw a 79% reduction in crashes in that corridor, and they sustained it,” said Mense.  She added, “We know traffic calming infrastructure works.”

Tailnet also supports more driver education programs and a recent law change adding penalties for drivers using their phones.

“All of those things combined are going to make it safer for folks,” Mense said.