(haipo) New data from the Or Yarok association, based on CBS data, reveals a disturbing picture: 83% of pedestrians injured in traffic accidents while crossing a road in 2025 were injured precisely at the crosswalk, the place that is supposed to be the safest. Haifa leads the large cities in the number of injuries.
1,371 pedestrians were injured at crosswalks in 2025
The data shows that 1,371 pedestrians were injured in road accidents while crossing the road at a crosswalk in 2025, of whom 33 were killed and 228 were seriously injured. The vast majority of injuries occurred on urban roads – 1,328 pedestrians were injured on urban roads, of whom 28 were killed and 215 were seriously injured. In total, 126 pedestrians were killed in road accidents on Israeli roads in 2025, the highest number in the last twenty years, and they constitute 27% of all road accident fatalities that year.
Haifa tops the list of cities – 104 injured at pedestrian crossings
Haifa leads the list of large cities with 104 pedestrians injured in crosswalk accidents in 2025, one of whom was killed and 11 were seriously injured. In the last decade (2016–2025), 1,122 pedestrians were injured in crosswalks in the city, of whom 16 were killed and 155 were seriously injured. Following Haifa are Jerusalem and Tel Aviv-Jaffa with 100 injuries each in 2025. In Jerusalem, three were killed and 21 were seriously injured, and in Tel Aviv-Jaffa, two were killed and 22 were seriously injured. In Petah Tikva, 90 pedestrians were injured, in Ashdod 80, in Netanya 71, in Ashkelon 49, in Holon 48, in Kfar Saba 45, in Bat Yam 41 and in Bnei Brak 40.
Green Light Association: "Reality proves that the crosswalk is the most dangerous place"
Attorney Yaniv Yaakov, CEO of the Or Yarok Association, said that "the crosswalk is supposed to be the safest place to cross the road, but reality proves that it is often the most dangerous place." According to him, "the Ministry of Transportation and Road Safety must invert the pyramid and put pedestrian safety at the top of the priority list. The speed of vehicles in cities must be moderated and restrained. Installing speed bumps or raising crosswalks are effective and inexpensive solutions that can create change and reduce the danger."
Yaakov added that "the responsibility for strengthening pedestrian safety also lies with the heads of cities and mayors. The red streets and those that are dangerous for pedestrians must be identified and the infrastructure improved. It is time to restore the sense of security to pedestrians in cities."
Israel stands out negatively in international comparison – and Jesta can save lives
According to the Or Yarok Association, pedestrians are a vulnerable population because they do not have a steel frame or safety systems to protect them, and the transportation system in Israel was largely designed from the perspective of the vehicle user without any real consideration for the needs of pedestrians. Israel is one of the countries where the rate of pedestrians among all fatalities is very high compared to the average in OECD countries. A study conducted by Dr. Assaf Sharon of the Maharlibad found that the use of a hand gesture by pedestrians to signal their intention to cross a road led to a 55% improvement in the rates of giving the right of way to pedestrians, and on two-lane streets, the use of the gesture led to an approximately 80% improvement in giving the right of way.
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* "Gesture" comes naturally to me: sometimes as a "good request", & sometimes as a "traffic cop"... and at the end of a "careful crossing", when both parties: 👀"the driver" + 👀"the person crossing" (in purple!) see each other; a small "gesture" in "thank you": a "nod" of the head or a "thumbs up"...🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏