Regional differentiation of pedestrian-caused road accidents in Poland: causes, severity, and safety implications
Piotr Gorzelanczyk
Akademia Nauk Stosowanych im. Stanisława Staszica w PileEdgar Sokolovskij
Abstract
Despite a long-term decline in the total number of road accidents in Poland, pedestrian safety remains a serious public health concern. Pedestrians continue to account for a substantial share of fatalities and serious injuries, with careless entry onto the roadway and illegal crossing being the dominant behavioral causes. This study investigates regional differences in pedestrian-caused road accidents across all 16 Polish provinces between 2018 and 2024.
The analysis is based on official police accident statistics and applies descriptive statistics, normalized safety indicators (accidents per population and fatalities per accident), and correlation analysis to assess relationships between accident causes and their consequences. The results show strong regional differentiation. Highly urbanized provinces such as Mazovian and Silesian record the highest absolute number of pedestrian accidents, while eastern provinces, including Lublin and Subcarpathian, exhibit significantly higher fatality rates per accident despite lower incident counts.
Behaviors such as lying or sitting on the roadway are associated with the highest accident-to-incident ratios (up to 75%) and the highest mortality levels, reaching 50% of accidents. The findings demonstrate that accident frequency alone does not adequately reflect pedestrian safety and highlight the need for region-specific preventive measures. The results may support evidence-based regional road safety policies aimed at reducing pedestrian fatalities.
Keywords:
traffic accident,, pedestrian, causes of traffic accidents, province, preventionReferences
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Akademia Nauk Stosowanych im. Stanisława Staszica w Pile
