Dangerous Roads newsletter: Dad gets ditched on one of the scariest nights for pedestrians

Every Halloween since our first kids were born, my brother and I have gotten together with our wives, our mom and other family members to go trick-or-treating in our neighborhood. But as our boys became teenagers, we’ve known that the day would come when they’d ditch us to hang out with their friends. That day came Friday.

Beyond my sentimentality — and my love of SweeTarts — a big reason I’ll miss following the four Castillo boys as they go door-to-door is I’ll no longer be able to keep an eye on them.

The New York DMV recently shared a Journal of the American Medical Association study that found the risk of pedestrian fatalities is 43% higher on Halloween than on any other night, and that children between the ages of 4 and 8 are 10 times more likely to be struck by a vehicle on Halloween than on any other evening.

AAA similarly informed me that 48 pedestrians under 18 were killed in crashes on Halloween in the U.S. between 2009 and 2023, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Even adults aren’t spared the dangers of drivers on Halloween night. Over that same time period, 679 pedestrians, of all ages, were killed between Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, "making those two of the deadliest days of the year for pedestrians," AAA said.

My two boys and their two cousins are all responsible teenagers with good heads on their respective shoulders, and I trust them to protect themselves, and each other. But, like anyone — child or adult — they’re capable of momentary lapses in judgment, or attention.

And that’s why it’s so valuable to have an extra set of grown-up eyes to watch them, and hands to grab them by their Batman cape or inflatable dinosaur costume and pull them back to the curb.

So go trick-or-treating with your kids as long as they’re cool with it, and maybe a year or two after that, too.

November gloom

As if the deadliest couple days for pedestrians weren’t enough, the first week of November brings a few other challenges for drivers and pedestrians.

On Sunday, most Americans turned their clocks back an hour for the end of daylight saving time. Although I appreciated the extra hour of sleep on Sunday, it came with a significantly increased risk for crashes related to drowsy driving, data shows.

According to AAA, there was a 73% increase in crashes in the 5 p.m. hour from October to November. That risk is even higher for crashes involving pedestrians — up 98% during that period.

"As it starts to get darker earlier in the coming days, the end of daylight saving time may also alter our sleep cycles," said AAA Northeast spokesman Robert Sinclair Jr. "To ensure a safe evening commute as we adjust to the time change, it’s crucial to be well-rested and extra vigilant behind the wheel."

And even if you’ve adjusted to the time change, there’s another early-November ritual pedestrians and drivers should be mindful of: voting. Some studies have shown an increase in crashes on Election Day. Although the data has focused on years with presidential elections, some of the risks hold true in other years, including voters rushing to get to the ballots before they close, and foregoing some traffic laws in doing so.

So give yourself plenty of time to get to the polls. And, if you haven’t reset your clocks yet, you may have more time than you think.

Readers speak up

After reading my newsletter last week, this reader chimed in on the role pedestrians have in preventing deadly crashes.

Your newsletter ... comparing behavior in New York to Ecuador was terrific and really makes a point that needs to be made more regularly in discussions about safety. EVERYONE has some responsibility in their own safety. ... And, if we do not talk about responsibility and accountability for all road users, commensurate with vehicle mass and speed, insurance rates will continue to rise and the region will become more unaffordable and less safe.

Arthur L. Miller, Rego Park, Queens

What measures do you think pedestrians can take to maximize their safety? Let us know at roads@newsday.com

By Alfonso A. Castillo

alfonso.castillo@newsday.com@alfonsoreports

Alfonso Castillo has been reporting for Newsday since 1999 and covering the transportation beat since 2008. He grew up in the Bronx and Queens and now lives in Valley Stream with his wife and two sons.