Safe Transportation Research & Education Center

Preventing roadway deaths and injuries due to motor vehicle crashes continues to be a prevailing public health challenge in the United States. Included in this challenge is improving the safety of pedestrians on street and road networks. Researchers and other professionals continue to develop best practices for ameliorating the outcomes of pedestrian crashes by conducting studies that examine why these crashes occur and what steps can be taken to prevent them in the future. To do this, many researchers have employed a systems approach to addressing pedestrian safety by acknowledging that the causal factors leading to a pedestrian crash are multifaceted. The systems approach can include an analysis of factors related to the operator of a motor vehicle involved in a crash, the pedestrian involved in crash, or the elements of the built environment and their potential association with the crash. Given the high incidence of alcohol-related traffic incidents on roadways (CDC, 2022), the potential association between the presence of alcohol outlets in neighborhoods and pedestrian injuries has garnered attention in the research literature. This research brief explores that relationship further by reviewing past work from the literature and developing key insights that should be considered in future research on this topic