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[–] 198 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (6 children)

A textbook example of how to lie with statistics.

In the entire US there are around 10 child pedestrian deaths on an average night. On Halloween there are only around 14 deaths despite thousands more children on the street. This means the actual risk per child is exponentially lower on Halloween night.

So the reality is the opposite of what's being claimed. Halloween is perhaps the least dangerous day of the year for child pedestrians.

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  • [–] 46 points 1 day ago* (3 children)

    Which might also make sense, if drivers are aware that a lot of kids will be walking around, they might be more careful.

    I wonder how the number of deaths has changed over time. Road and vehicle safety have improved, lighting improved, it's more common for kids to have reflective objects on them, and fewer kids are going out. Maybe it was a lot worse in the past?

    So discussions like the ones in this thread have helped save lives, but I'd much rather the post itself wasn't misleading

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  • [–] 21 points 1 day ago

    Vehicle safety in the us for pedestrians is worse than ever. The amount of huge and heavy SUVs who hit people litterally like a truck with their high hoods, which also have huge dead spots in driver vision have counteracted the technical improvements made.

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  • [–] 15 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

    42 years of statistics were analyzed in the linked study. Perhaps the chart's creators were trying to alarm drivers and parents to make them more careful, but they could have done so without wildly overstating the danger.

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  • I wonder how the number of deaths has changed over time. Road and vehicle safety have improved, lighting improved, it’s more common for kids to have reflective objects on them, and fewer kids are going out. Maybe it was a lot worse in the past?

    also they changed the date for daylight savings time changes so now it's light until like, 8pm on halloween.

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