Nearly half of all El Paso traffic deaths so far this year involve pedestrians

EL PASO, Texas -- El Paso police released the latest numbers of traffic deaths for 2019, and so far nearly half of them as cases of pedestrians being struck. As of this week, there have been 55 deaths on the roads, with 25 of them involving pedestrians. 

Police said that out of all the incidents of pedestrians being struck, the pedestrians were at fault in 16 of those events, while 9 were the fault of motorists.

"Drivers are more distracted than they have been in years past," said Robert Gomez, spokesman for the El Paso Police Department. "The same applies to pedestrians. People listening to music or looking at their phones while walking can also be a problem for a pedestrian crossing the street."

Gomez encourages pedestrians to remember that the right-of-way is given not taken. Always yield to vehicles, regardless whether you have the right of way or not. Even if you are in the right, he says the vehicle will win every time.

By the end of last month, police said they had issued 100,000 traffic citations -- with 2,200 of those involving drunk driving.