Because many people in the US believe laws will protect them...walk out in a road and cars are supposed to stop for you. If they don't...you die. Pedestrians have the most to lose, but act very casually about walking so close to where cars are driving at high speeds. In the closest major city to me (Portland) the major increase in pedestrian deaths has come from the homeless population. No good statistics on why, but drugs were decriminalized a few years ago and there are suspicions that has something to do with it, but the data is not easily reviewed. Also, some major cities (like Portland) reduced normal traffic patrols that would help to curb speeding and reckless driving.
This is victim blaming, plain and simple. Why are people ever forced to be close to high speed traffic? The likelihood of dying goes up very quickly as vehicle speed goes up. It is possible to design livable cities where screwing up doesn’t cost you your life.
People aren't forced, they make bad decisions. The homeless in Portland often choose to camp near major freeways and cross them regularly. By near, I mean directly next to (like between the offramp and the freeway). The city isn't allowed to or chooses not to remove these people in unsafe areas and when they do things to dissuade camping next to freeways they are cast as terrible people for hating the homeless.
Driver was DUI, but was later found not guilty because they suspected even a sober person would not have been reasonably able to avoid hitting this woman crossing a major freeway in a bad area at night.
https://www.oregonlive.com/news/2019/09/homeless-woman-dies-...
I’ve noticed the same in Seattle. There’s also a more “I dare you to hit me” attitude in a lot of my fellow pedestrians than in other cities I’ve lived in. I’m sure that has at least something to do with it too.
https://www.opb.org/article/2022/02/03/70-percent-pedestrian...