Traffic Kills Walkers, Bikers

Nearly half of the 1.2 million people killed in traffic accidents around the world each year are not in cars. They are on motorcycles or bicycles or walking along the side of the road, according to a story by the Post's esteemed medical writer, David Brown.

In the United States, 51 percent of deaths involve car drivers, 21 percent are car passengers, 11 percent motorcyclists, 11 percent pedestrians and 2 percent bicyclists.
High-income countries, such as the United States and most of Europe, have 52 percent of registered cars but only 9 percent of traffic deaths. For low-income countries, including most of sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia, the statistics are nearly reversed. They have 9 percent of the world's cars but 42 percent of the traffic deaths.