Safety: South Carolina regretfully 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 2006, the most recent year published. The numbers show that as a result of the 125 pedestrian fatalities experienced in 2006, we rank 4th in the nation with 2.89 fatalities per 100,000 population. Nationally the rate is 1.60 pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 population. Also in 2006, after 16 persons died as a result of bicycle-motor vehicle crashes, South Carolina's fatality rate stood at 3.70 per million population. That is the 7th highest death rate in the nation -- 1.12% higher than the national average of 2.58 deaths per million population.
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
