Safety: South Carolina regrettably continues to be in the ‘top ten’ nationally in terms of the number of per capita fatalities for pedestrians and bicyclists as a result of crashes with motor vehicles in 2007, the most recent year published. The numbers show that as a result of the 106 pedestrian fatalities experienced in 2007, we have 5th highest pedestrian death-rate in the nation with 2.40 fatalities per 100,000 population. Nationally the rate is 1.54 pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 population. This is still an improvement over 2006 due to recording 19 fewer pedestrian fatalities, thereby closing-in on the national average. Also in 2007, after 20 persons died as a result of bicycle-motor vehicle crashes, South Carolina's cyclist fatality rate stands at 4.54 fatalities per million population. That is the 3rd highest death rate in the nation – nearly double the national average of 2.31 deaths per million population. This comes as a result of a 25% increase (from 16 to 20) in the number of cyclists killed in South Carolina in 2007.
Air Quality: Improving our air quality involves identifying and managing sources of air pollution. One of the major sources of certain types of air pollution is the motor vehicle. As South Carolina continues to increase in population and in numbers of vehicles on our roads, we need to look for ways to reduce the number of vehicle miles traveled. Motor vehicles generally have the highest level of pollution output per mile in the first few miles of operation-those miles before the engine has warmed up. That is why it is important to be able to use walking or cycling as substitute modes for more and more short trips.
Public Health: Walking and cycling are modes of transportation you can use to lose weight, increase your cardiovascular health and stay fit.
Energy: The South Carolina Energy Office offers information on Energy conservation.
Economy: Facilities that support the recreational use of cycling by tourists can offer economic benefits to our citizens.
Links of Interest:
South Carolina Department of Public Safety Crash Data
South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (Bureau of Air Quality)
South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (Obesity Prevention and Control)
USC Arnold School of Public Health Prevention Research Center
The South Carolina Energy Office
PDF documents:
How South Carolina ranked in Pedestrian Crashes in 2003 (279Kb)
How South Carolina ranked in Bicycle Crashes in 2003 (359 Kb)
How South Carolina ranked in Pedestrian Crashes in 2004 (317Kb)
How South Carolina ranked in Bicycle Crashes in 2004 (768Kb)
Recreational use of cycling by tourists (1.1Mb)
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Getting Around in South Carolina
